NEWARK, New Jersey – As promised, Minnesota Wild coach John Hynes skated his team with some gusto on Sunday morning in St. Paul before they boarded a plane bound for New Jersey. He was not at all pleased with several aspects of his team’s game in Saturday’s 5-2 loss to the Devils, and vowed to address some of the shortcomings at TRIA Rink before the team headed to MSP.
But the story on the ice quickly became what looked like the month’s first full-participant practice for injured forwards Kirill Kaprizov and Joel Eriksson Ek. When forward Mats Zuccarello left the ice for a maintenance break, Kaprizov took his place in top-line rushes, providing a spark of hope that perhaps the offensive boost the Wild have needed so badly since Christmas might be coming sooner rather than later.
Hynes, ever the patient realist, made it clear that while the guys who wear 97 and 14 will make the trip to New York City for games versus the Devils, Rangers and Islanders this week, he still does not expect either of them to play, barring new information when Kaprizov visits with his New York doctor.
“I think it’s ‘where is he at now’ after his last checkup,” Hynes said, noting that both players were fully involved in practice, but have not yet faced any contact. “Now he’s done some things, and expanded, now where is he really at, and maybe that might give us a little more clarification.”
As for the disappointing night versus the Devils, the Wild get another crack at New Jersey on Monday, and took a long look at some of the things the coach didn’t like in their first meeting.
“We had a good video meeting this morning and just addressed some certain areas that we needed to tighten up,” Hynes said. “Some of it was detail things where we gave up some easy offense, which we don’t traditionally do.”
The Wild face the Devils at 6 p.m. CT at the Prudential Center in downtown Newark.
Gophers forward Connor Kurth signs with Lightning
When the Minnesota Gophers make their list of returning scorers for the 2025-26 season, it will reveal plenty of offensive opportunities available for the ambitious young skater who wants to wear maroon and gold.
On Friday and Saturday, four of the Gophers’ top five scorers from their 2025 Big Ten champion team signed pro contracts and departed college hockey early. On Sunday, it became a perfect five for five, as forward Connor Kurth inked an entry-level deal with the Tampa Bay Lightning and will forgo his final season of college eligibility.
Kurth, who is from Lindstrom, Minn., was picked by Tampa Bay in the sixth round of the 2022 NHL Draft and had attended development camp in Florida last summer. In 11 games as a Gopher, he had 32 goals and 39 assists, and put up career-best numbers last season after a hot start where he posted a dozen points in the first six games of his final college season.
While former Gophers Oliver Moore and Sam Rinzel made their NHL debuts with the Chicago Blackhawks on Sunday, Kurth is expected to spend the rest of the season with Tampa Bay’s AHL team in Syracuse, N.Y.
Hynes still has Terrier pride
During his time as a student-athlete at Boston University, Hynes was teammates with Jay Pandolfo, who was an on-ice force for the Terriers on teams that qualified for the NCAA Frozen Four in every year of his college career, including a NCAA title win in 1995. After a lengthy NHL career, Pandolfo returned to his alma mater three years ago as head coach, and this weekend led them to their third consecutive Frozen Four trip.
Asked about his old teammate on Sunday, Hynes noted that Pandolfo has a perfect 10-0 record in regional play as a player and as a head coach.
“We have a really good friendship and he’s done a great job,” Hynes said. “Obviously he’s recruited really well, and his coaching has obviously been ...
