Mats Zuccarello missed the daily routine. Not the goals or the glory or the gratification. While the Wild forward sat out the first month of the season to heal an injury, he skated on his own. When the team left for a road trip,

Kaprizov, always in motion, can weave and dash through virtually any NHL team’s defensive coverage. Zuccarello provides a willing and intuitive partner, helping to springboard Kaprizov to open space or jumping into a shooting lane to receive a pass.

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.

For the Wild, still without center Nico Sturm and blue liner Zach Bogosian, it’s always day to day. “It’s the guys that you have, not the guys you don’t have,” head coach John Hynes said.

Former New York Rangers forward Mats Zuccarello missed the beginning of the season for the Minnesota Wild due to a lower-body injury. Due to this, he did not make his 2025-26 season debut for the Wild until Nov. 7 against the New York Islanders.