WINNIPEG, Manitoba — Amid all of the Wild training camp hype surrounding new arrivals Nico Sturm and Vladimir Tarasenko, the full-time arrival of rookies like Danila Yurov and Jesper Wallstedt, and the contract extensions handed to Filip Gustavsson and Kirill Kaprizov, there was another storyline that probably should have been noted as a bigger deal.

Veteran forward Mats Zuccarello was injured, we learned in September. Not only would he miss all of training camp, he might not be ready until after Thanksgiving because of a lower body ailment, maybe not unexpected for a 38-year-old mainstay with more than 1,000 NHL games on his resume.

As the Wild slouched out of the gate, winning just three times in their first dozen games, the “things will get better when Zuccy returns” mantra was heard

See Full Page