Wild Vs Avalanche: Olympic run for Minnesota staff reshaped practice, travel and a projected Denver lineup

The Olympic gold experience for Minnesota’s coaches and support staff is arriving in Denver alongside the team — and it’s already changing who’s on the ice and how the Wild are preparing for the Wild Vs Avalanche matchup. Coaches and trainers who joined Team USA returned with high-stakes experience; meanwhile three key players were absent from the last practice before travel because they attended a White House visit after the Olympics.

Who feels the impact first in the Wild Vs Avalanche trip

Here’s the part that matters: Minnesota’s coaching staff and medical team brought back the playoff‑like environment of winning at the Olympics, which the head coach expects to translate into sharper preparation for the immediate road test at Ball Arena. Players who attended the White House visit after Team USA’s overtime win were not on the ice for the final practice, creating short-term availability questions for the trip to Denver.

Projected lineup for Colorado — what’s on the roster sheet

• 97 Kirill Kaprizov - 38 Ryan Hartman - 36 Mats Zuccarello
• 90 Marcus Johansson - 14 Joel Eriksson Ek - 12 Matt Boldy
• 13 Yakov Trenin - 22 Danila Yurov - 91 Vladimir Tarasenko
• 17 Marcus Foligno - 78 Nico Sturm - 18 Vinnie Hinostroza

The lineup above is a projection and is subject to change. Matt Boldy appears in the projection despite being absent from the last practice before travel; team commentary indicated a plan for him to be available for the game in Denver.

Olympic roles, White House trip and who traveled with Team USA

John Hynes served as an assistant coach on Team USA’s Olympic run and returns without a medal — coaches did not receive the Olympic medals that went to players. Hynes described the experience as valuable for his own coaching development, saying the high‑stakes environment and how staff handle highs and lows will make him a better coach for the Wild when the season resumes in Colorado on Feb. 26. Hynes was back on the ice with the Wild for the Feb. 25 practice, but Matt Boldy, Brock Faber and Quinn Hughes were still absent at that session.

After Team USA outlasted Canada 2-1 in overtime on Feb. 22, most players — including Boldy, Faber and Hughes — were invited to the State of the Union and visited the White House; that attendance is the reason for their absence at the Feb. 25 practice. Wild personnel said the plan is for all three players to be in action versus the Avalanche, and players were scheduled to fly with the team to Colorado.

Support staff who were with Team USA in Italy included athletic trainers John Worley and Travis Green and orthopedic surgeon Dr. Joel Boyd. On the management side, assistant general manager Chris Kelleher was part of the U. S. management staff under President of Hockey Operations Bill Guerin as GM; Hynes noted how relieved and proud Guerin appeared during the run, even describing an emotional moment on the bench.

Standings context, team confidence and immediate expectations

The Wild went into the Olympics tied for the second‑most points in the NHL with 78, trailing only Colorado by five points. The Avalanche used up one of their three games‑in‑hand on Feb. 25, and Minnesota leadership framed closing that gap as realistic rather than impossible. Alternate captain Marcus Foligno highlighted the team’s confidence and ambition to chase the No. 1 spot while emphasizing that making the playoffs is the primary objective.

The real question now is whether the Olympic experience for coaches and staff and the brief White House absence for some players will combine into a short‑term disruption or a net boost when the puck drops at Ball Arena.

What’s easy to miss is that the staff returns with both upgraded situational experience and medical coverage continuity — the trainers and surgeon who supported Team USA are available to the Wild going forward, and that continuity can matter in a compressed schedule.

Micro timeline: Feb. 22 — Team USA beat Canada 2-1 in overtime; Feb. 25 — Hynes practiced with the Wild while Boldy, Faber and Hughes were absent; Feb. 26 — season resumes in Colorado. This sequence explains the short window between the Olympic finale and the Denver trip and frames the availability questions for the matchup.

Final note: lineup projections stand as listed but remain subject to change once the team confirms travel availability and game‑day decisions at Ball Arena.

Writer’s aside: It’s notable how quickly the Olympic calendar bunched with the NHL schedule — that compression is shaping roster decisions more than usual and could be the difference between a full‑strength trip and an adjusted lineup.