This article is part of our The Daily Puck series.
The Minnesota Wild have proved to be little more than a slump buster for other teams recently. They're giving teams with a struggling power play -- St. Louis, Washington and the Rangers recently -- a chance to correct their mistakes.
They've lost seven straight and are dropping faster than a skydiving penguin.
They can't score. They can't defend. They aren't doing much right at the moment.
The most concerning thing is they're a team with some top end talent, solid goaltending, between three and five fantasy-relevant defenseman and a solid crop of middle-of-the-pack guys for deeper leagues, and it's all turned to ash in the last six weeks.
It creates a problem when so many guys drop out of fantasy relevance. They can look like a deal -- particularly in daily -- because they're ailing but it's a name that should turn it around. Those depth guys like Mikael Granlund, Matt Dumba or Jason Zucker have the ability to be the bread and butter of a keeper league victory, but now you can't even trust guys like Thomas Vanek, Zach Parise, Jason Pominville or Mikko Koivu for steady production.
Here's recent production for a handful of Minnesota guys who should have some fantasy relevance:
Jason Pominville: 1 goal, 1 assist in 21 games
Zach Parise: 1 goal, 4 assists in 12 games
Mikko Koivu, 1 goal, 5 assists in 19 games
Mikael Granlund: 2 goals in 35 games, 6 points in 21 games
Jason Zucker: 0 goals, 1 assist in 13 games
Jared Spurgeon: 0 goals, 3 assists in 15 games
Marco Scandella: 1 goals in 25 games, 4 points in 20 games
Jonas Brodin: 0 goals, 2 assists in 29 games
There are a lot of guys in Minnesota I'm not trusting, especially on a daily roster, until the situation there improves. And it can improve. But right now, the offense is tepid, the defense is prone to collapses and the goaltending lacks confidence.
Projected Goalie Starters (all times Eastern)
For updates on the projected goalies later in the day, check our Projected Goalies Grid
Devils (Cory Schneider) at Flyers (Steve Mason), 1:00 PM
Bruins (Tuukka Rask) at Wild (Devan Dubnyk), 2:00 PM
Predators (Carter Hutton) at Panthers (Al Montoya), 7:00 PM
Islanders (Jaroslav Halak) at Hurricanes (Eddie Lack), 7:00 PM
Senators (Craig Anderson) at Blue Jackets (Joonas Korpisalo), 7:00 PM
Maple Leafs (James Reimer) at Canucks (Ryan Miller), 7:00 PM
Capitals (Braden Holtby) at Stars (Antti Niemi), 8:00 PM
Ducks (John Gibson) at Blackhawks (Corey Crawford), 8:30 PM
Jets (Connor Hellebuyck) at Oilers (Cam Talbot), 10:00 PM
Coyotes (Anders Lindback) at Sharks (Martin Jones), 10:30 PM
Injury News For Teams Playing Saturday
New Jersey Devils
Patrik Elias, LW (knee) - has skated, but is a long way from being able to return
Michael Cammalleri, LW (hand) - is not expected to return this weekend
Jiri Tlusty, LW (wrist) - isn't expected to skate for months
Jon Merrill, D (arm) - practiced Thursday, but is questionable for Saturday
Philadelphia Flyers
Sean Couturier, C (lower body) - is on injured reserve
Boston Bruins
Chris Kelly, RW (fractured femur) - will be out for the rest of the season
Adam McQuaid, D (upper body) - has practiced, but isn't cleared for contact
Minnesota Wild
Jared Spurgeon, D (undisclosed) - is unlikely to play Saturday
Jonas Brodin, D (foot) - will miss at least another couple weeks
Nashville Predators
Eric Nystrom, LW (foot) - is on injured reserve
Gabriel Bourque, LW (upper body) - has practiced again, but has no timeline for his return
Florida Panthers
Aleksander Barkov, C (upper body) - is expected to return early next week
Dave Bolland, C (lower body) - has no updated timeline for his return
Erik Gudbranson, D (upper body) - was placed on IR Tuesday
Willie Mitchell, D (undisclosed) - didn't play on Thursday
New York Islanders
Eric Boulton, LW (undisclosed) - is on injured reserve
Adam Pelech, D (upper body) - may be out for the rest of the season
Carolina Hurricanes
James Wisniewski, D (ACL) - is still rehabbing
Justin Faulk, D -(leg) - didn't play Friday
Ottawa Senators
David Dziurzynski, LW (undisclosed) - is on injured reserve
Chris Phillips, D (back) - isn't making progress
Clarke MacArthur, LW (concussion) - has started skating, but hasn't been able to return
Columbus Blue Jackets
David Clarkson, RW (upper body) - remains on injured reserve
Curtis McElhinney, G (ankle) - is traveling with the team
Jared Boll, RW (neck) - didn't play Thursday
Sergei Bobrovsky, G (groin) - isn't making much progress toward a return
Toronto Maple Leafs
Joffrey Lupul, LW (middle body) - isn't traveling with the team
Milan Michalek, LW (finger) - remains out
Stephane Robidas, D (knee) - has no timetable for a return
Shawn Matthias, C (whiplash) - isn't traveling with the team
Tyler Bozak, C (head) - is on IR
Jared Cowen, D (hip) - isn't close to making his Maple Leafs debut
Nazem Kadri, C (lower body) - did not play Thursday
Josh Leivo, LW (upper body) - left Thursday's game with an injury
James van Riemsdyk, LW (foot) - is on injured reserve
Vancouver Canucks
Brandon Sutter, C (jaw) - will miss 6-to-8 weeks following surgery
Derek Dorsett, RW (illness) - didn't play Wednesday
Alexander Edler, D (fractured fibula) - is out for six weeks
Washington Capitals
Brooks Orpik, D (lower body) - didn't play Thursday
Jay Beagle, C (hand) - isn't ready to return
Evgeny Kuznetsov, C (undisclosed) - is expected to play Saturday
Dallas Stars
Jason Spezza, C (upper body) - is expected to miss the next week of play
Travis Moen, LW (lower body) - will be out for "a little while"
Jason Demers, D (illness) - there's a "good chance" he plays Saturday
Anaheim Ducks
Shawn Horcoff, C (suspension) - continues to serve a 20-game suspension
Ryan Getzlaf, C (nose) - broke his nose Thursday, but finished out the game
Clayton Stoner, D (hip flexor) - is not traveling with the team
Chris Stewart, RW (jaw) - is returning to Anaheim to be evaluated
Chicago Blackhawks
Marcus Kruger, C (wrist) - remains out
Artemi Panarin, LW (illness) - may be able to return Saturday
Winnipeg Jets
healthy
Edmonton Oilers
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, C (hand) - remains out following surgery
Oscar Klefbom, D (infection) - is nearing a return
Andrew Ference, D (hip) - is done for the season
Arizona Coyotes
Boyd Gordon, C (upper body) - is considered week-to-week
Mike Smith, G (lower body) - is skating, but isn't close to a return
Joe Vitale, C (concussion) - will not play for the rest of the season
San Jose Sharks
Brenden Dillon, D (upper body) - is unlikely to play Saturday
Hot
Alex Galchenyuk, C, MTL — Despite Montreal's terrible run, Galchenyuk has been hot. The birthday boy potted a pair of goals against Buffalo on Friday. He's put up four goals and three assists with an average of four shots per game over the last seven matches.
P.K. Subban, D, MTL — Yup, two Canadiens. They've been so bad and hopeless that I thought we'd go a little Eric Idle on this for them. Subban's very good season is getting lost in conversations about incredible defensemen because Erik Karlsson playing like possessed banshee. Subban is on an eight-game point streak and has points in 14 of his last 15 games. He has four goals and 17 points in that stretch.
Cold
Dan Boyle, D, NYR — Boyle continues to get the most power play time among team defenseman, but has had a tough time putting up points in 2016. In 16 games this year he has no goals and just a pair of assists. He's an offensive defenseman, but has failed to produce a shot at all in five games during that stretch. Nonetheless, there's reason to beleive he'll continue getting opportunities to ignite that offense. Only three Rangers defenders average over two power play minutes per game, Boyle, Ryan McDonagh and Keith Yandle. McDonagh is out with a concussion and when he returns, there's the possibility the team tries to trade Yandle. Boyle remains one of their few defensive weapons on the power play.
Recommended Pickup
David Perron, LW, ANA — The move to Anaheim has suited Perron well. It's been 10 games since the trade and he's put up four goals and and six goals with 1.8 shots per game. Spending time on a line with Ryan Getzlaf seems to suit him well.
