The Minnesota Wild spent the offseason trying to retain key pieces of their roster. One of those was Marco Rossi, who got a three-year extension from the Wild. As the team prepares to face the New York Rangers, they will be without Rossi.
According to Peter Bauch of The Athletic, per head coach John Hynes, both Rossi and Zach Bogosian will be missing the contest on Monday night. Rossi was injured in the game on Saturday with the Philadelphia Flyers. He played 18:01 in the 2-1 overtime loss to the Flyers. In the game he took one shot and registed one assist. He also blocked a shot in the meeting, which led to the injury and him missing this contest.
Rossi was on the top line against the Flyers. With him out of the lineup on Monday night, Joel Eriksson Ek is expected to join Kirill Kaprizov and Matt Boldy on the top line. This moves Eriksson Ek up a line, with Marcus Johansson, Ryan Hartman, and Vladimir Tarasenko expected to man the second line.
Meanwhile, changes will also be made to the powerplay unit. Tarasenko, Eriksson Ek, Boldy, Kaprizov, and Zeev Buium are expected to take the top unit. Rossi has been solid on the powerplay this year. He has two assists on the powerplay, while having a goal and four helpers overall this year.
Moreover, blue liner Bogosian will be missing his second straight game. He was injured while blocking a shot in the 5-1 loss to the Washington Capitals on Friday. He was on the third defensive rotation and replaced by David Jiricek against the Flyers. While he is out, Jiricek is expected to continue as the replacement.
After the 2-3-1 Wild face the Rangers on Monday night, they will travel to New Jersey to face the New Jersey Devils on Wednesday. The team are hopeful to have both Rossi and Bogosian back in the line up by then.
