Changes aplenty for Wild defense amid injury mess

ST. PAUL — Among the many colorful cliches in the sports world, next man up is the one being used — and overused — by the Minnesota Wild quite often in this season s first two weeks. There was precious little time for pleasantries and small talk when Wild coach John Hynes met with the media following the team s optional morning skate on Thursday. Instead, Hynes produced a printed list and ran through all of the injuries his team has incurred over the first six games of 2026-27. Forward Nico Sturm: out with a concussion, no timeline for his return; forward Marcus Foligno: core injury, has started skating, no timeline for his return; forward Nick Foligno: upper-body injury, has started skating, no timeline for his return; defenseman Olli Maatta: upper-body injury, out; defenseman Jared Spurgeon: upper-body injury, out. Hynes didn t even bother to mention goalie Filip Gustavsson or defenseman Brock Faber, both of whom are out long term following hip surgery and a skull fr