At the Rink: Jets at Wild

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- Winnipeg Jets defenseman Dustin Byfuglien is likely to play against the Minnesota Wild on Friday (8 p.m. ET; TSN3, FS-N), coach Paul Maurice said.

Byfuglien was injured during the third period of a game against the Nashville Predators on Thursday and did not return. Maurice said afterward that Byfuglien would make the trip.

"By the time we got off the plane, he was feeling real strong," Maurice said. "It was good news, but we were pretty confident he'd be able to play tonight."

The Jets had an optional skate after winning 5-4 in overtime on Thursday and will head back to Winnipeg after the game to begin a season-high six-game homestand. The game against the Wild is the lone road game in a stretch of nine of 10 at the MTS Centre.

Maurice was less clear about which goaltender would start.

Connor Hellebuyck made 31 saves against the Predators, and Maurice has been hesitant to play his goaltenders on consecutive nights. But Michael Hutchinson has lost six straight decisions and hasn't won since Nov. 21. Hellebuyck has started each of the past five games.

Minnesota will welcome defenseman Nate Prosser back to the lineup after he missed three games with a hand injury.

Prosser has two assists in 31 games but is plus-5 and plays in a way that is conducive to success against Winnipeg's speed and size.

"It's going to be a hardworking game," Wild coach Mike Yeo said. "They play with speed and counter well. Without a doubt, they're an aggressive team, an in-your-face team, and their [defensemen] like to step up. Having somebody compete and be strong in their 1-on-1 battles down low and be strong around the net, those are important qualities."

Wild goaltender Devan Dubnyk will start.

Here are the projected lineups:

JETS

Drew Stafford - Bryan Little - Blake Wheeler

Andrew Ladd - Mathieu Perreault - Nikolaj Ehlers

Chris Thorburn - Adam Lowry - Alexander Burmistrov

Joel Armia - Andrew Copp - Matt Halischuk

Jacob Trouba - Dustin Byfuglien

Toby Enstrom - Tyler Myers

Mark Stuart - Ben Chiarot

Connor Hellebuyck

Michael Hutchinson

Injured: Grant Clitsome (back), Ondrej Pavelec (knee), Mark Scheifele (lower body)

Scratched: Adam Pardy, Anthony Peluso

WILD

Zach Parise - Mikael Granlund - Jason Pominville

Jason Zucker - Mikko Koivu - Charlie Coyle

Thomas Vanek - Erik Haula - Nino Niederreiter

Chris Porter - Jarret Stoll - Justin Fontaine

Ryan Suter - Jared Spurgeon

Jonas Brodin - Matt Dumba

Marco Scandella - Nate Prosser

Devan Dubnyk

Darcy Kuemper

Injured: Ryan Carter (hand)

Scratched: Niklas Backstrom, Mike Reilly

Status report: Hellebuyck made 14 saves in his NHL debut in Minnesota on Nov. 27 in a 3-1 win. … Carter will miss the next two games for the Wild, who play in Nashville on Saturday.

Who's hot: Wheeler had a goal and an assist in the win against the Predators and leads the Jets with 31 assists and 43 points this season. … Suter had a goal and an assist in a loss to the Buffalo Sabres on Tuesday. His six goals are two short of his career high.