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Wild forced to shuffle roster as injuries pile up at alarming rate
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- Wild forced to shuffle roster as injuries pile up at alarming rate
Injuries are rapidly piling up for the Minnesota Wild, who started the season with goalie Filip Gustavsson and defenseman Brock Faber on injured reserve. Now, just four games into the regular season, they've been depleted by injuries to Nick Foligno, Marcus Foligno, Olli Maatta, and Zach Bogosian.
That forced the Wild to put either Gustavsson or Faber on long-term injured reserve, and they elected to make the move with Gustavsson on Friday. And that doesn't mean Faber is any closer than Gustavsson to returning from the fractured skull that he suffered a week before the season started.
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Here's what Joe Smith, who covers the Wild for The Athletic, said in a Reddit AMA on Friday when he was asked about Gustavsson.
"Nothing new there, the Wild are still hopeful for a November return," Smith wrote. "Gustavsson showed up in great shape, and I saw him quite a bit during training camp as he'd watch the practices after his rehab/workouts. Apparently Gustavsson was dealing with this hip issue for a year and a half, so he could be like a new goalie when he comes back. But we'll know more as it gets closer to the end of October."
The Wild called up defenseman Matt Kiersted from Iowa. There was a need on the blue line after Maatta missed Thursday's Wild-Lightning game in Tampa with a lower-body injury. He practiced on Friday, which is a good side.
However, Bogosian was dinged up against Tampa Bay and didn't practice Friday. That leaves him and Maatta questionable for Saturday's game against the Panthers in South Florida.
Nick Foligno has also been placed on injured reserve with an upper-body injury that he sustained in Tuesday's loss at Buffalo. He'll be out until at least next Wednesday. His brother, Marcus, didn't practice Friday after reporters saw him limping Thursday night.
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That's likely why the Wild called up forward Rieger Lorenz from Iowa, swapping him for Tyler Pitlick. Head coach John Hynes indicated Friday that Lorenz will play Saturday, although Marcus Foligno hasn't been ruled out.
"Well, possibly," Hynes said when asked if Marcus would play. "If he's going to play, then he will play, but I would anticipate that Riegs will be in the lineup."
The Wild and Panthers drop the puck just after 5 p.m. CT on Saturday.
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This story was originally published by Bring Me The Sports on Oct 9, 2026, where it first appeared in the MN Wild section. Add Bring Me The Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
