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

Without Kirill Kaprizov, Jonas Brodin and Jared Spurgeon, Minnesota played a smart, poised and gutsy game, pulling away in the third for a 3-1 victory at Ball Arena.

The Wild are bringing Kirill Kaprizov and Jared Spurgeon back from injuries as the NHL season reaches the home stretch.

Some of the issues that looked fixed two days ago in a decisive win against the Dallas Stars were again troubling for the Colorado Avalanche in a loss to the Minnesota Wild.

January 20 - Yakov Trenin and Brock Faber scored goals 1:35 apart early in the third period, and the Minnesota Wild beat the Colorado Avalanche ... and captain Jared Spurgeon, snapped a three ...

The Minnesota Wild hosted the Colorado Avalanche for their first season meeting on Thursday evening, Jan. 9. The Wild were still without Kirill Kaprizov, Brock Faber, Jared Spurgeon, and Jakub Lauko.

Now, fans await the return of superstar forward Kirill Kaprizov, who has been out of the lineup since December 23, and captain defenseman Jared Spurgeon, who has been out since he was injured on ...

Wild: Without some key players, including captain Jared Spurgeon and leading scorer Kirill Kaprizov ... They improved to an NHL-best 17-5-3 on the road. Avalanche: Colorado continued to struggle on ...

Takeaways Wild: Without some key players, including captain Jared Spurgeon and leading scorer ... to an NHL-best 17-5-3 on the road. Avalanche: Colorado continued to struggle on the power play.

Takeaways Wild: Without some key players, including captain Jared Spurgeon and leading scorer ... to an NHL-best 17-5-3 on the road. Avalanche: Colorado continued to struggle on the power play.