×

Suddenly shorthanded Wild need role players to step up

ST. PAUL — Wild coach Bruce Boudreau had no update on Eric Staal’s injury suffered in Tuesday’s loss to the Anaheim Ducks. He provided little clarity about Mikko Koivu’s lingering lower-body injury. And he has completely glossed over any mention of Jared Spurgeon’s recovery process over the past few days.

Perhaps the 64-year-old coach is trying his best to forget that the once-streaking Wild are suddenly without three of their best players.

Asked how the Wild are going to fill those voids moving forward, Boudreau saw it as a chance to publicly issue a challenge to some of the role players within the organization.

“What are we going to do? Just phone it in and say, ‘We got a couple of injuries. Can everyone just not let us play for a while?'” Boudreau quipped. “No. You’ve got to play. This is freaking the greatest opportunity for guys.”

Whether that’s someone like Ryan Donato, who recently was elevated to the top of the lineup, or Victor Rask, who has been buried near the bottom of the lineup, or even Nico Sturm, who is in the minor leagues still awaiting his opportunity, the Wild need someone to step up, and soon.

“There’s a lot of guys in this lineup that can step up and play different roles,” winger Ryan Hartman said. “Obviously, it (stinks) losing (Koivu and Staal). They have 2,200 games combined between them. That’s a lot of experience. But I think we have guys who can step up and fill those shoes for the time being.”

That’s exactly what Boudreau is hoping for. He remembers being a role player himself during his playing days and impatiently waiting for a chance to show his skills.

“You were praying when you were in the minor leagues for guys to get hurt to give you an opportunity to play,” Boudreau said. “We need somebody (to say), ‘This is my opportunity. I’m going to show them how good I am.’ “

Just like Donato has done over the past couple of weeks.

While Donato was extremely critical of his own play after Tuesday’s loss, Boudreau praised him, noting how he’s making it impossible to take him out of the lineup.

“He’s taken advantage,” the coach said. “He’s jumping in, and when we’re calling up a guy like Nico Sturm and (Donato) might be the guy that’s sitting, he comes in and is our best forward. That’s somebody that’s stepping up.”

That said, if the Wild want to continue their crawl up the NHL’s Central Division standings with Koivu and Staal out of the lineup, they need more than Donato to step up.

“We have a lot of guys that are going to step up,” Donato said. “I’m confident in that. I think a lot of guys here are confident in that. Let’s see what we can do.”

Newsletter

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

I'm interested in (please check all that apply)
Are you a paying subscriber to the newspaper? *
   

Starting at $4.62/week.

Subscribe Today