ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Minnesota Wild captain Mikko Koivu has been cleared to return to the lineup after missing the last eight games with a left shoulder injury.
Wild coach Mike Yeo said before Thursday’s game against Vancouver that he expected Koivu to be back on the first line, centering Dany Heatley and Devin Setoguchi to face the Canucks. That was the combination at the beginning of the season, but injuries and ineffectiveness have prompted Yeo to move Heatley and Setoguchi around several times.
Koivu has played in only 41 of their first 53 games, but he still led the Wild with 24 assists.
Defenseman Clayton Stoner was placed on injured reserve with an unspecified leg injury. Yeo called his status “week to week.”
