The Minnesota Wild’s decision to put Daemon Hunt on waivers was already looking shaky. Jared Spurgeon’s injury turned it into a real problem.
Minnesota took the risk on Oct. 23, leaving the 24-year-old exposed as the roster began to get healthier on the blue line. Salary-cap pressure played a major part in the move, and the Wild were unwilling to send David Spacek through waivers, which left Hunt as the odd man out. The next day, Nashville grabbed him, and Minnesota has been trying to patch together its defense ever since.
Then came Tuesday night against the Utah Mammoth. Spurgeon went down in that win, and before Minnesota dropped a 4-3 overtime decision to the New York Islanders on Thursday, he was labeled “week-to-week.” That left the Wild staring at a blue line that has already been stretched by injuries and may now be asked to absorb even more.
Hunt’s departure is stingier in hindsight because he wasn’t just a warm body. He was originally traded to the Columbus Blue Jackets in the David Jiricek deal in 2024, then found his way back to Minnesota after Columbus waived him before the 2025-26 season.
He split time between St. Paul and the AHL’s Iowa Wild before getting a bigger opening when Brock Faber suffered a fractured skull in the preseason finale.
The numbers did not scream untouchable. Hunt had no goals in 11 games and finished minus-4.
But Dylan Loucks of The Hockey News reported that he was second on the team in expected goals behind Wild star Quinn Hughes when he was waived. He also helped suppress high-danger looks and handled a needed role on the third pair.
The timing of the roster squeeze made the choice harder. Spurgeon had recovered from a previous injury, Olli Maatta was back in the lineup in Utah, and Minnesota had to sort through Hunt, Spacek, and journeyman Matt Kiersted.
Spacek could have been sent to Iowa, but he has played well enough to draw interest elsewhere, and the Wild were wary of losing him for nothing. Kiersted, meanwhile, has filled a role for John Hynes, but at 28, his ceiling is limited.
So Hunt was the one moved out, with the veteran presence and immediate utility of Kiersted carrying the day over Hunt’s upside. At the time, it looked like a tough call. With Spurgeon now sidelined, it looks even tougher.
Minnesota’s defense picture has become increasingly crowded with injuries and uncertainty. Faber has been cleared to skate as the next step in his recovery, but he remains a ways from returning because of the fractured skull. Spurgeon’s absence has bumped Jonas Brodin onto the top pairing, though that arrangement may not last; he hasn’t played more than 62 games since reaching 73 in 2021-22.
Maatta has held up on the second pair. Zach Bogosian, who was initially part of a “Silver Stick” chase as an emergency option while he pursues his 1000th game, has become a central piece of the defense. Kiersted and Spacek round out the group, and the Wild also claimed Cameron Crotty from the Ottawa Senators on Thursday.
There is still a chance the blue line changes again. If Minnesota moves a defenseman as trade talks for Dylan Larkin continue to intensify, the team may have to dig even deeper into its system, including former first-round pick Carson Lambos, who was recalled after Spurgeon’s injury became public Thursday.
Bad timing shaped the Hunt decision. But with Spurgeon now on the shelf, the Wild are paying for it while trying to keep their defense intact.
In Other News...
Wild Fans Should Be Worried About This Dylan Larkin Push
The idea of the Wild chasing Dylan Larkin is the kind of rumor that naturally gets attention in Minnesota, especially with the club looking for ways to sharpen its long-term outlook. Larkin is a productive center and a legitimate top-end player, but the discussion around him is less about star power alone and more about what kind of roster shape Minnesota would be buying into if it pushed hard for a deal with Detroit.
The problem is that a move like this would not come cheap, and the Wild would have to weigh immediate help against the cost of thinning out a prospect pool that still matters to their future. Any serious pursuit also comes with the usual trade-off questions about whether a team is adding the right piece for contention or overpaying for a player who raises the floor without changing the ceiling in the way a true franchise centerpiece would. [Read more 🡒]
Hurricanes Fans Will Recognize The Trade Problem In Quinn Hughes Situation
Quinn Hughes has put the Wild in a familiar kind of waiting game, one that leaves front offices trying to read tea leaves without much help from the player side. His future in Minnesota remains uncertain, with no clear sign yet on whether he will commit to an extension or drift toward free agency, and that uncertainty is already shaping how the team has to think about its next move.
Elliotte Friedman pointed out the wrinkle that makes this situation especially tricky: unlike Mikko Rantanen, Hughes has not given Minnesota a list of teams he would be willing to sign with. That leaves the Wild with a hard choice between holding onto him and exploring a trade, but any deal would still come with the uncomfortable possibility that a new team could pay the price and still end up watching him walk away. [Read more 🡒]
Brock Faber Update Could Matter For More Than Minnesotas Blue Line
Brock Faber is finally taking another step in his recovery, with the Wild defenseman cleared to begin exercising and set to start skating soon after the skull fracture he suffered in the preseason. Minnesota has managed to keep rolling without him, but his absence has still been felt in the way the blue line has had to be managed, with the workload spread around more heavily than the team would prefer over the long haul.
His return could do more than simply deepen the Wilds defense. Fabers presence should help distribute minutes more effectively once he is back in the lineup, and it also carries a broader ripple effect for a team that has made its defensive structure part of its identity. Quinn Hughes has already pointed to that group as one reason he feels planted in Minnesota, which gives Fabers comeback a significance that reaches beyond one injured player coming back into the fold. [Read more 🡒]