After a rare rough start in net by Jesper Wallstedt resulted in a 4-2 loss to the Vancouver Canucks, head coach John Hynes updated the media in regards to the health of young forward Marco Rossi. Unfortunately, it’s not what fans want to hear.
According to The Athletic’s Joe Smith, Hynes described Rossi’s time line as “week-to-week”. In hockey parlance, that could be anywhere from tomorrow to four months. The 24-year-old center has been skating on his own, but hasn’t appeared in action since sustaining an injury against the San Jose Sharks in the Wild’s 2-1 overtime loss on November 11.
It had been a solid start to the season for Rossi as he’s recorded 4 goals and 9 assists (5 helpers coming on the power play) in 17 games and he gave Hynes some flexibility as he could move between the top line with Kirill Kaprizov and Matt Boldy or flip-flop with Joel Erikson Ek and provide a little depth on the second line.
With his new bridge contract in his back pocket, Rossi was on pace to out-perform his 60-point breakout season from a year ago. For a player who didn’t miss a single game over the last two seasons, it is a bit of an unfortunate break that he hasn’t been able to return to the line-up sooner.
The injury has tested the depth of the Wild’s roster as Hynes has tried a few different solutions in order to fill the hole left by Rossi’s absence. Eriksson Ek has had a crack at the top line, but of late it’s been rookie Danila Yurov (at least when he hasn’t missed games) centering Kaprizov and Mats Zucarello on the top line.
The trio is carrying a slight edge in goals scored (6-5) and expected goals (51.62% xGF) in their 79 minutes together at 5v5 this season. Yurov is up to 3 goals and 4 assists in 22 games this season, and brings a sense of defensive responsibility to that line. Still, he hasn’t quite developed the scoring touch that Rossi has shown at times in his career.
The trickle-down effect on the roster also complicates matters as Rossi’s injury (along with ones to Marcus Foligno and Vinnie Hinostroza) have forced Hynes to play Liam Ohgren, Ben Jones, and Tyler Pitlick a little more than he had hoped to once Nico Sturm and Ryan Hartman returned from their time on injured reserve.
After their scorching November that vaulted them back into the playoff race, things have cooled a bit for Minnesota as they’ve dropped games to the Canucks, Sabres, and Flames. Rossi’s absence might not be the sole reason for their recent struggles, but it has been a factor.
If Rossi’s issues continue to linger, Bill Guerin might start using up some more minutes on his cell phone plan. With American Thanksgiving now in the rear view mirror, it does seem some teams are starting to make decisions about the future of the seasons and trade talks are quietly heating up. Teams like Vancouver, Nashville, and Los Angeles have been involved in some of the recent rumor-mongering and have some players that could fill the role Guerin needs.