Game Preview: Wild at Blue Jackets

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- The Minnesota Wild hits the road today, embarking on a quick trip to Columbus to face off against the Blue Jackets before returning home for a weekend back-to-back.

Info for Tonight's Game:

• When: Thursday, December 18th at 6:00 p.m. CT
• Where: Nationwide Arena (Columbus, Ohio)
• Watch: FanDuel Sports Network
• Listen: KFAN
• Gamecenter: Wild vs. Blue Jackets

Wild Record: 20-9-5

Blue Jackets Record: 14-13-6

2025-26 Series Record: 0-1-0

All-Time Wild Record: 35-23-11 (13-15-5 at Columbus)

Last Time Out

This Season on Wild vs. Blue Jackets

Columbus won the series-opening contest, 7-4, in St. Paul (10/11).

LW Matt Boldy (1-2=3) and LW Kirill Kaprizov (2-1=3) led Minnesota with three points each. D Zeev Buium (1-1=2) and C Joel Eriksson Ek (0-2=2) also posted multi-point games. G Filip Gustavsson saved 25-of-31 shots faced.

RW Kirill Marchenko (3-0=3) notched a hat trick and C Boone Jenner (1-2=3) and D Zach Werenski (1-2=3) tallied three point games. G Elvis Merzlikins saved 48-of-52 shots faced to earn the victory for the Blue Jackets.

Wild Leaders Against Blue Jackets

• RW Vladimir Tarasenko leads Minnesota with 28 points (14-15=28) in 26 career games against the Blue Jackets
• LW Marcus Johansson has 24 points (10-14=24) in 36 career games
• RW Mats Zuccarello has 20 points (10-10=20) in 33 games
• D Quinn Hughes owns 16 points (1-15=16) in 11 matches

Blue Jackets Leaders Against Wild

• C Sean Monahan leads Columbus with 15 points (6-9=15) in 32 games
• D Zach Werenski owns nine points (5-4=9) in 14 games
• D Damon Severson owns eight assists (0-8=8) in 20 games
• D Brendan Smith has seven points (2-5=7) in 17 games

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On the Mend

Zach Bogosian: lower body (one game missed)

Jonas Brodin: upper body (three games missed)

Vinnie Hinostroza: lower body (12 games missed)

Marcus Johansson: lower body (one game missed)

Jake Middleton: upper body (four games missed)

Mats Zuccarello: upper body (four games missed)

Full Injury Report

Connections

• C Charlie Coyle recorded 242 points (91-151=242) in 479 games across seven seasons (2012-19) with the Wild
• D David Jiříček was selected by Columbus in the first round (No. 6 overall) of the 2022 NHL Draft and collected 11 points (1-10=11) in 53 games over parts of three seasons (2022-25)
• D Daemon Hunt played 48 games with Columbus’s primary affiliate, the Cleveland Monsters, in 2024-25
• C Brendan Gaunce recorded one assist in 12 games with Minnesota during the 2024-25 season
• Columbus Head Coach Dean Evason spent parts of five seasons as the Head Coach of Minnesota, posting a 147-77-27 record in 251 games (2020-23)
• Columbus Goalie Coach Niklas Backstrom went 194-142-50 in 409 career games with Minnesota (2006-15). He is the franchise leader in games played and wins

Fast Facts

• Minnesota recorded a 11-game point streak (9-0-2) vs. Columbus, its longest-ever point streak against the Blue Jackets, prior to its loss on 10/11/25
• The Wild has earned points in 19 of its last 26 meetings (14-7-5) against the Blue Jackets

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