Almond a standout in Wild scrimmage

After spending the past two seasons playing in Switzerland, Cody Almond has returned to the Minnesota Wild. On Saturday, he made his first pitch for a roster berth.

With 3,500 fans on hand at Xcel Energy Center, Almond had a goal and an assist to lead the Green team to a 5-2 victory against the White team in an open scrimmage.

Almond was a member of the Wild organization from 2009-12, splitting time between Minnesota and the Houston Aeros of the American Hockey League. He signed with HC Geneve-Servette in Switzerland, mostly to work on his offensive game. If Saturday was any indication, that work is paying off.

"It was a little better pace today," Almond said. "I think everyone's got the first-day jitters over with so there were some better plays and some nice goals."

For more from the Wild website, CLICK HERE (http://wild.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=731155)