Plenty of things went wrong for the Minnesota Wild in their Game 2 loss to Dallas, but perhaps the biggest factor was one that wasn't on the ice at all. Mats Zuccarello missed Monday's game after taking a cheap shot elbow from Tyler Myers a few days earlier and the impact his absence had cannot be overstated.
The good news is that, according to Wild beat writer Michael Russo, Zuccarello is a gametime decision for Game 3. What exactly that means is yet to be seen but there's at least optimism that he'll play.
Dallas got alive in Game 1 thanks in large part to how lethal Minnesota's power play was. The Wild scored twice with a man advantage, including the first ice breaker goal of the series. Zuccarello assisted on both of those goals, plus a third that saw him brilliantly set up Kirill Kaprizov for one of the most efficient goals you'll ever see.
Then he got taken out by Myers and hasn't played since.
Tyler Myers caught Mats Zuccarello with the elbow and sits for 2 minutes 😳 pic.twitter.com/dBeA60O8Mp
— Gino Hard (@GinoHard_) April 18, 2026
With Zuccarello off the ice in Game 2, the Wild failed to score on any of their four power play opportunities. It was clear his passing ability was sorely missed, as the puck movement just wasn't the same, and Minnesota couldn't set up scoring chances the way they did in the first game.
Yakov Trenin is also a gametime decision for the Wild ahead of Game 3 vs. Dallas
Zuccarello isn't the only major injury the Wild are keeping an eye on ahead of puck drop. Yakov Trenin left Game 2 after he was sent to the shadow realm on a monster hit by Colin Blackwell in the first period. It was a clean hit, which makes it even worse because there was no real recourse; Dallas decided to make the series physical and take Minnesota's hits leader out of the game.
Hopefully not out of the series.
Russo reported on Wednesday that Trenin would be a gametime decision for Game 3 and that Nico Sturm would step in if needed. This makes it sound like one -- or both -- could end up playing, but we'll have to wait and see.
Zuccarello and Trenin gametime decisions. If one can’t go, Sturm will play.
— Michael Russo (@RussoHockey) April 22, 2026
Haight and Jones part of big team now so they can be part of meetings, etc, in case called upon
Trenin set the Wild's single-season franchise record for hits back in March, ironically against the Stars, and like the loss of Zuccarello his absence was felt.
Both Marcus and Nick Foligno ramped up the physicality but it trended more toward emotional outbursts than calculated aggression. Trenin not being on the ice to put bodies into the boards allowed Dallas to run more free than they should have been able to, and gave them time to bait the Foligno brothers into dumb penalties.
Even without two key players, the Wild were still just a few lucky bounces away from winning Game 2 and being up 2-0 in the series. That's the confidence they can take into Game 3, but hopefully they're also able to take Trenin and Zuccarello there as well.
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