Despite Thursday’s tough outcome, Wild players were thrilled to have their captain and star forward back in the lineup.

ST PAUL, MINNESOTA - DECEMBER 15: Kirill Kaprizov #97 of the Minnesota Wild celebrates at the bench after scoring a goal in the first period of his game against the Vegas Golden Knights at Xcel...

Kaprizov had a couple scoring chances for the Wild (28-16-4), who were delighted to get their superstar back after he missed the last 12 games with a lower-body injury. Karel Vejmelka made 26 saves for Utah (21-19-7) in what was just their second shutout win of the season.

Superstar winger Kirill Kaprizov and veteran defenseman Jared Spurgeon returned to practice on Wednesday. Head coach John Hynes told reporters he's "cautiously optimistic" that both will play in their upcoming game against the Utah Hockey Club at Xcel Energy Center.

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- Minnesota Wild star Kirill Kaprizov and captain Jared Spurgeon were activated from injured reserve Thursday and played in the team's 4-0 loss to Utah. Minnesota was still ...

Minnesota Wild left wing Kirill Kaprizov (97) skates with the puck during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Utah Hockey Club Friday, Dec. 20, 2024, in St. Paul, Minn. Credit ...

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — The Minnesota Wild activated star Kirill Kaprizov and captain Jared Spurgeon from injured reserve before their game against Utah on Thursday, putting two integral players ...

The Minnesota Wild passed their first test without star winger Kirill Kaprizov. They will look to continue that good fortune on Thursday night when they visit the Montreal Canadiens.

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Minnesota fell back on depth, defense and Filip Gustavsson’s goaltending and improved its NHL-best road record.

Jared Spurgeon scored what turned out to be the winning goal in the first period and the visiting Minnesota Wild went on to defeat the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-1 on Wednesday night.