Being in a U.S. market where hockey is the number one sport in the state, today is another example of why it’s great to be here,” Wild coach John Hynes said.

The Minnesota Wild are getting a perfect storm of returns for Thursday evening against the Utah Hockey Club as both star forward Kirill Kaprizov and defenseman Jared Spurgeon have been activated from IR.

Despite Thursday’s tough outcome, Wild players were thrilled to have their captain and star forward back in the lineup.

The Minnesota Wild are trying to stay atop the West, a mission that will be easier if Kirill Kaprizov and Jared Spurgeon return Thursday.

Jared Spurgeon put the Wild up 1-0 at 5:43 of the first period, taking a pass in the slot from Boldy and putting the puck past the stick side of Mrazek. Frederick Gaudreau made it 2-0 at 7:17, when his shot from the bottom of the right face-off circle got past Mrazek on the short side.

The Wild found relief from their rut with their most tried-and-true remedy: playing on the road. Like clockwork, they left St. Paul and immediately improved, using a strong start to hold off the Chicago Blackhawks 4-2 on Sunday night at United Center for just their second victory in seven games.

Makar gained possession, started a 3-on-1 and made a pass from the right circle to Lehkonen, who lifted the puck over Igor Shesterkin. Newcomer Jack Drury and Juuso Parssinen also scored for the Avs, while Nathan MacKinnon and new acquisition Martin Necas set up both Makar goals.

Minnesota Wild coach John Hynes and winger Marcus Foligno react after a 4-0 loss to Utah Thursday night at Xcel Energy Center as Kirill Kaprizov and Jared Spurgeon returned to the lineup from injuries.

The Wild were shutout at home 4-0 against the Utah Hockey Club. Despite each playing for more than 15 minutes on the ice, neither superstar had much of an impact on the game, Kaprizov only had 3 shots on goal, and Spurgeon with 0. The team in total had 26 shots on goal, and all were saved by Utah goalie Karel Vejmelka.

The Chicago Blackhawks and Minnesota Wild were meeting in tumultuous times. Both teams had lost their previous two games, with Minnesota losing 5-4 to the Calgary Flames the night before.

In the middle frame, Chicago’s Nick Foligno was whistled for holding Wild star forward Kirill Kaprizov, and complained a bit too forcefully about the call, drawing a second penalty. Minnesota made it 3-0 on the extended power play, as Eriksson Ek recorded his ninth goal of the season and second of the weekend.