Wild place Jake Middleton on LTIR with upper-body injury
The Minnesota Wild have placed defenseman Jake Middleton on long-term injured reserved due to an upper-body injury.
The #mnwild has placed defenseman Jake Middleton on Long-Term Injured Reserve.
— Minnesota Wild PR (@mnwildPR) December 13, 2024Middleton sustained the injury early on in Thursday’s 7-1 loss to the Edmonton Oilers, as a shot from Evan Bouchard struck Middleton in the hand during his first shift of the game. He didn’t return to the game, and was confirmed to be out of the lineup by the Wild during the second period.
According to Athletic reporter Michael Russo, Middleton will also require surgery on the injury, which he is undergoing on Friday. We may have further details on Middleton’s timeline for return once the surgery is complete.
With Middleton’s LTIR replacement, the Wainwright, Alberta product will miss at least the next 10 games and 24 days for the Wild. Based on that timeline, he should be eligible to return sometime in early January, although that won’t mean that his injury is healed by them.
In response to Middleton’s injury, the Wild have claimed defenseman Travis Dermott off of waivers from the Oilers. Dermott played 10 games for the Oilers, going without a point in those games.
The injury disrupts what has been an excellent season for Middleton, as he’s putting up career numbers so far this year. He has 5 goals and 8 assists for 13 points in 29 games, a 36-point pace that would easily have surpassed his previous career high of 25 points set last season had he played all 82 games this year.
Russo also indicated that winger Mats Zuccarello could be close to coming off of LTIR and returning to the Wild lineup. Zuccarello has missed the last 13 games with a lower-body injury. He has 6 goals and 8 assists for 14 points in 16 games when he has been healthy this season.
The Wild will look to bounce back from their blowout loss on Thursday without Middleton when they host the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday at 1 p.m. CST. Minnesota currently sits in second in the Central Division with a 19-6-4 record.