Wild's Michael McCarron Expected To Play; Jared Spurgeon To Be Taken Off The NHL Injured Reserve

Ahead of tonight's matchup against the Montreal Canadiens, the Minnesota Wild continue to alter their roster as they become healthier.

Yesterday, the Wild placed forward Tyler Pitlick and defenseman Cameron Crotty on waivers in anticipation of the returns of Brock Faber and Jared Sprugeon.

According to The Athletic's Michael Russo, we now know it will be Spurgeon who will return first, as the Wild plan to remove Spurgeon from the injured reserve after the waiver period ends at 1 p.m. CT. 

At the moment, the Wild haven't indicated whether Spurgeon will play, but if he does, Russo said the Wild will remove David Spacek from the lineup.

Spurgeon has missed the previous five games with a lower-body injury. In 10 games this season, the Wild's 36-year-old captain has scored one goal and five points. He's also blocked 19 shots and is averaging 20:33 of ice time. 

Up front, Michael McCarron is the only injury the Wild are dealing with, but he is expected to play tonight.

The 31-year-old missed Saturday's overtime loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning with an upper-body injury. It was the first game McCarron has missed this season, as he has posted three goals and eight points in 18 games, averaging 13:35 of ice time. 

If McCarron does play, it will be Nico Sturm who exits the lineup. McCarron will then center the fourth line with Nick Foligno and Marcus Foligno. 

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