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Marcus Johansson left the Minnesota Wild’s 6-2 win over the Boston Bruins with a lower-body injury and is officially considered day-to-day, with no firm timetable yet from the team. It’s not panic mode, but it is one of those “uh-oh, not him too” moments for a Wild roster that’s already been grinding through injuries this season.
Marcus Johansson Injury Update
Marcus Johansson is dealing with a lower-body injury, is listed as day-to-day, and had no detailed update from coach John Hynes after the game.
He left Sunday’s home win over Boston in the second period and did not return, prompting understandable concern given how important he has become in the Wild’s top six and on the power play.
Before exiting, Johansson still left his mark on the game, picking up a power-play assist on Jared Spurgeon’s goal that opened the scoring and pushed his season totals to 11 goals and 26 points in 33 games.
At 35 years old, he’s quietly on pace for one of the more productive campaigns of his career, which is probably why his limp down the tunnel sucked a bit of the air out of an otherwise feel-good win.
What Happened to Marcus Johansson
Johansson was hurt on a second-period sequence that started as a dangerous 2‑on‑1, then turned into something much uglier. Skating in with Matt Boldy, he tried to one-time a pass, whiffed while dropping to a knee, then chased the puck into the corner, where he collided with former Wild forward Marat Khusnutdinov.
It didn’t look like a dirty hit, just a hard, awkward hockey collision at high speed, the kind players shake off 99 times out of 100, until they don’t. After the contact, Johansson clearly favored his leg, limping off and heading straight down the tunnel instead of taking another twirl on the bench to test it out.
His last shift ended with 15:26 left in the second and lasted only about 30 seconds, which tells you he knew right away something wasn’t right. The Wild later confirmed he was done for the night with a lower-body issue, and there was no further clarification from Hynes postgame.
What makes this sting more is the timing: Johansson came into the Bruins game riding a four-game point streak (3 goals, 3 assists), playing some of his sharpest hockey of the year. For a veteran winger to be clicking like that in December, on a team that’s finally stacking wins again — and then suddenly disappear down the tunnel? Fans are right to feel a bit snakebit.
When Will He Return?
Right now, the expectation is that Marcus Johansson is day-to-day, which means there’s at least a chance he won’t miss much time, though he should be considered questionable for the next game against the Capitals. The Wild haven’t announced any move to injured reserve, and reports so far emphasize that he’s still being evaluated rather than ruled out long-term.
For a team that’s already had Jonas Brodin, Mats Zuccarello, Jake Middleton, and others in and out of the lineup this season, that “day-to-day” label is probably the best they could reasonably hope for.
From a practical standpoint, here’s what this likely means in the short term:
- The Wild may need to reshuffle their top six, bumping someone like a depth winger or call-up into Johansson’s role alongside Boldy.
- Power-play units could get tweaked, since Johansson has been a regular contributor there, including the assist on Spurgeon’s goal against Boston.
Fantasy hockey players will want to keep a close eye on pregame reports ahead of the Capitals matchup; as of now, there’s no official word that he’ll sit, but “day-to-day” plus a visible limp usually leads to at least one missed game.
The bigger picture, though, is that Johansson has a recent history of bouncing back from lower-body issues after missing short stretches. He sat out playoff games last season with a similar designation and returned relatively quickly.
If this follows that pattern, Wild fans might be frustrated in the short term but relieved a week or two from now when he’s back feeding cross-ice passes to Boldy again. Until then, it’s wait, refresh, repeat on the injury updates.
Disclaimer: The information in this article is based on publicly available reports, official team statements, and postgame updates at the time of writing. Injury statuses in professional sports can change quickly, and timelines for return are subject to further medical evaluation and team decisions. This content is intended for informational purposes only and should not be considered official confirmation from the Minnesota Wild, the NHL, or any medical professionals. Readers are advised to follow team announcements for the most up-to-date information.
