The Wild has discovered a winning formula of late, sweeping a two-game road trip to snap a five-game slide, but Sunday could be the last time this version takes to the ice as the team plays its final game before Monday's trade deadline at home against the Blues.
"As a coach, you never know what's going to happen," coach Bruce Boudreau said. "But as a player, yeah, it's gotta affect you because you hear the rumors and nowadays anytime there's a rumor, an agent seems to phone the player and say, 'Hey, listen, things are happening here.' I just hope we understand the better we play, the better we stay together."
Since the Wild traded forward Charlie Coyle to the Bruins for winger Ryan Donato last Wednesday, the team has responded with two solid efforts and Donato has been part of that improvement. In his first two games, he's chipped in three assists.
"Ryan's played really well," Boudreau said, "and hopefully he can continue it and continue to add that spark to the group."
Amid this recent run of success, the Wild won't make any lineup changes to face the Blues for the second time in the past week. St. Louis rolled by the Wild 4-0 last Sunday at Xcel Energy Center.
Although he remains out, veteran Matt Hendricks has healed an upper-body injury suffered Feb.12 but center Victor Rask (lower-body injury) is still on the mend.
"He skated this morning," Boudreau said of Rask. "But it didn't go as well as planned, so he's still a way's away."
Projected lineup:
