Preview: Wild at Blackhawks

CHICAGO, Ill. -- The Minnesota Wild took the midnight train following last night's loss to Calgary, but this train wasn't just going anywhere; it was headed for Chicago. Today the Wild challenges the Blackhawks on their home ice at United Center, hoping to shake off some of the funk the Wild have been experiencing on-ice. The team has lost five out of its last six games but hopes to regain some confidence and take down the last-in-the-Central Blackhawks.

Info for Tonight's Game:

• When: Sunday, January 26th at 6:00 p.m. CT
• Where: United Center (Chicago, Illinois)
• Watch: FanDuel Sports North
• Listen: KFAN 100.3 FM
• Gamecenter: Wild vs. Hawks

Wild Record: 28-17-4, 60 points, 3rd in Central Division

Blackhawks Record: 15-28-5, 35 points, 8th in Central Division

2024-25 Series Record: 2-0-1

All-Time Wild Record: 56-29-6 (25- 17-3 at Chicago)

Last Time Out

This Season on Wild vs. Hawks

Chicago earned a 2-1 overtime victory in the series-opening game at United Center (11/10) before the Wild posted a 3-2 win in the second game in St. Paul (11/29) and a 4-3 win at Xcel Energy Center in the third game (12/23).

D Jared Spurgeon (3-0=3) and LW Kirill Kaprizov (1-2=3) lead Minnesota with three points each in the season series. G Filip Gustavsson is 1-0-1 with a 2.47 GAA and a .906 SV% after starting the first and third games. G Marc-André Fleury saved 21-of-23 shots faced to earn the win for the Wild in the second game.

C Ryan Donato leads Chicago with three points 2-1=3) in the season series. C Connor Bedard (1-1=2) and C Jason Dickinson (2-0=2) each own two points. G Petr Mrazek is 1-1-0 with a 1.99 GAA and a .935 SV% while starting the first two games for Chicago. G Arvid Soderblom 23-of-26 shots faced in the third contest for the Blackhawks.

Wild Leaders Against Blackhawks

• RW Mats Zuccarello leads Minnesota with 25 points (8-17=25) in 26 career matches against Chicago
• Spurgeon owns 20 points (6-14=20) in 44 games
• Kaprizov owns 15 points (6-9=15) in 12 games
• LW Marcus Johansson has 12 points (5-7=12) in 24 career games

Hawks Leaders Against Wild

• RW Craig Smith owns 21 points (11-10=21) in 47 games
• LW Teuvo Teravainen (4-10=14 in 24 games) and LW Nick Foligno (8-6=14 in 29 games) each own 14 points

To view recent transactions, visit wild.com/transactions.

On the Mend

Jonas Brodin: lower-body injury (eight games missed)

Marcus Johansson: concussion (four game missed)

Connections

• C Ryan Hartman was selected by Chicago in the first round (30th overall) of the 2013 NHL Draft and collected 57 points (27-30=57) in 141 games during four seasons (2014-18) with the Blackhawks
• Fleury went 19-21-5 with a 2.95 GAA and a .908 SV% in part of one season (2021-22) with the Blackhawks
• Donato tallied 39 points (18-21=39) in 84 games in parts of two seasons with Minnesota (2018-20)
• D Wyatt Kaiser is from Andover and played three seasons at the University of Minnesota-Duluth (2020-23)
• Chicago LW Nick Foligno is the older brother of Wild LW Marcus Foligno
• RW Pat Maroon collected 16 points (4-12=16) and 60 PIM in 49 games with Minnesota during the 2023-24 season

Fast Facts

• Minnesota’s 56 all-time wins against Chicago are its third-most against an opponent
• The Wild has earned points in 15 consecutive meetings (14-0-1) against the Blackhawks dating back to 2/4/20
• Minnesota has earned a point in 11 consecutive games played at Xcel Energy Center (10-0-1) dating back to 2/10/18
• The Wild has earned points in seven consecutive games played at United Center (6-0-1) since 1/21/22
• In 2015-16, the Wild became the first team to win every game in a season series of at least five contests against Chicago since the Boston Bruins went 8-0-0 in 1938-39

For more information on today's matchup, check out the game notes below.