Islanders at Wild
Zach Parise did more harm than good by trying to rush his return from a recurring foot injury. With Parise now on injured reserve, the Minnesota Wild look to snap a four-game losing streak on Sunday, when they open a four-game homestand against the New York Islanders. "Obviously, if he's not a game player, then I'd like to keep him off the ice completely and give him a good chance to heal," Wild coach Mike Yeo told the St. Paul (Minn.) Pioneer Press.
Parise blocked a shot against St. Louis on Nov. 25 before worsening the injury during the road trip, which Minnesota completed with a 6-4 loss at Winnipeg on Friday. Speaking of injuries, captain John Tavares was a spectator for the first time in 247 games as New York dropped a 2-1 decision to New Jersey on Saturday. Tavares, who leads the Islanders with 39 points (13 goals, 26 assists), is listed as day-to-day with a lower-body injury.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, MSG Plus (New York), FSN North (Minnesota)
ABOUT THE ISLANDERS (11-21-7): Winless in its last eight home contests (0-4-4), New York begins a stretch during which it plays eight of its next 11 on the road. Frans Nielsen scored his team's lone goal on Saturday and Kyle Okposo notched an assist as both extended their respective point streaks to five games. Brock Nelson replaced Tavares on the top line but lost six of his eight faceoffs in nearly 13 1/2 minutes of ice time.
ABOUT THE WILD (20-15-5): In addition to placing Parise on injured reserve, Minnesota assigned goaltender Johan Gustafsson to Iowa of the American Hockey League. Josh Harding is expected to return after missing four contests as he dealt with a change in medication for multiple sclerosis. Niklas Backstrom has started in the absence of Harding, who leads the league with a stingy 1.51 goals-against average.
OVERTIME
1. Islanders RW Cal Clutterbuck makes his return to Minnesota after being traded from the Wild in June.
2. New York LW Thomas Vanek, who is riding a four-game point streak, has scored five goals and set up three others in seven career contests versus the Wild.
3. Minnesota RW Jason Pominville has collected two goals and three assists during his four-game point streak.