The Wild placed Mats Zuccarello on injured reserve with an upper-body injury on Tuesday, a day after downgrading him from day-to-day to week-to-week.
After being downgraded by the team, Zuccarello missed his first game of the season on Monday, a 4-3 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins, and then missed Tuesday’s 4-3 overtime victory over the Boston Bruins.
This season, the 36-year-old winger leads the Wild with 28 points (6 goals, 22 assists).
The loss of Zuccarello is significant for the Wild, who have already lost their top two defenders in Jared Spurgeon and Jonas Brodin. Brodin is on long-term injured reserve, while Spurgeon (lower body) is questionable for Thursday’s game against Montreal.
Putting Zuccarello on injured reserve allows the Wild to recall him, but it also means he’ll be out for at least the next seven days.
Vinni Lettieri filled in for Zuccarello on Monday and Tuesday, though he left the latter game early after blocking a shot. Lettieri has four points (3 goals, 1 assist) in 15 games for Minnesota this season.
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