Wild forward Matt Boldy week to week with upper-body injury: How big of a loss is it?

The Minnesota Wild will be without forward Matt Boldy for an undetermined amount of time due to an upper-body injury, according to general manager Bill Guerin. Here are the key details:

• Boldy suffered the injury during the third period of Saturday night’s game in Toronto. He fell awkwardly into the boards after being checked by Maple Leafs defenseman Morgan Rielly.
• The 22-year-old forward, who is in his third year with the Wild, has recorded one goal and two points in two games this season. In the previous season, he scored an impressive 31 goals and 63 points.
• Guerin clarified that the team will not be placing Boldy on long-term injured reserve.

Significance of the Loss

This injury is a significant blow to the Wild. Boldy was the team’s second-leading goal scorer last season, with 31 goals. He joins an elite group of players, including Kirill Kaprizov, Marian Gaborik, and Jason Zucker, as the only drafted-and-developed Wild players to achieve this feat. Boldy’s absence will also impact the productivity of the line he plays on alongside Marcus Johansson and Joel Eriksson Ek. Additionally, with captain Jared Spurgeon already sidelined due to an upper-body injury, the team will not receive any salary cap relief. If another forward gets injured in the short term, the Wild will be forced to play a man short upfront. However, they will have the option to call up a forward earning $875,000 or less for the following game.

Initial Plan to Cope with Boldy’s Absence

For at least one game against Montreal on Tuesday, the Wild will dress seven defensemen and 11 forwards instead of reassigning defenseman Dakota Mermis and recalling a forward. This means they will likely avoid using a defenseman as a forward, instead choosing to give Kirill Kaprizov extra ice time in an effort to ignite his performance. Kaprizov has yet to score a goal despite taking six shots and providing two assists in the first two games. The coaching staff also noticed that he was engaging in too many lateral plays with Mats Zuccarello during Saturday night’s game, so adjustments will be made to focus on a more direct style of play.

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(Photo: Bruce Bennett / Getty Images)