The Wild Warmup is presented by Bryant Heating and Cooling
ST. PAUL -- A busy final week of training camp and the preseason continues on Wednesday night when the Wild hosts the first of back-to-back home games at Xcel Energy Center.
For the second time this exhibition season, Minnesota will play the St. Louis Blues, before hosting the Chicago Blackhawks 24 hours later.
The Wild will conclude the preseason Saturday night at United Center.
But first things first.
Minnesota is expected to ice a younger lineup on Wednesday when it aims to avenge a 6-2 loss to the Blues from 11 days prior, when both teams opened the exhibition campaign at Enterprise Center in St. Louis.
Adam Beckman scored both Minnesota goals in that game, tying the score at 2-2 4:27 into the third period, before the Blues pulled away with four unanswered goals in the final 15 minutes of regulation time.
Beckman, who did not play in the Wild's 3-1 victory over Colorado on Monday, leads the team with three goals in two preseason appearances. The game Wednesday may very well be his final opportunity to show he belongs on the Opening Night roster, as the Wild is expected to ice a more seasoned lineup against Chicago on Thursday.
Minnesota, of course, will have to ice at least eight NHL "veterans" on Wednesday, with goaltender Kaapo Kahkonen expected to draw his second consecutive start.
He stopped 15 of 16 shots in earning the victory over the Avs on Monday. With Cam Talbot expected to start each of the final two games of the preseason, Wednesday's game could mark Kahkonen's final exhibition tune up before the games count for real beginning next Friday in Anaheim.
Other veterans expected to play for the Wild include Nico Sturm, Jordan Greenway, Dmitry Kulikov, Kyle Rau and Victor Rask. Andrew Hammond will serve as Kahkonen's backup.
The Blues will be playing on the second half of back-to-back games on Wednesday following a 3-1 loss to the Dallas Stars at American Airlines Center.
St. Louis brought a more veteran group to Dallas than it will bring to Minnesota, as notable Blues expected to play versus the Wild include Kyle Clifford, Tyler Bozak, Klim Kostin, Ivan Barbashev and James Neal, who had a hat trick in the first preseason meeting between the clubs two weeks ago.
One-time Wild farmhand Sam Anas is also expected to play, as is former University of Minnesota Duluth star Scott Perunovich, a native of Hibbing who won the Hobey Baker Award at UMD in 2020.
Goaltender Ville Husso, who started the game last month and made 10 saves in a period of action, will earn the start on Wednesday.
