MFA Northwest

05/03 13:34 CDT Wild will be without Joel Eriksson Ek and Jonas Brodin for first two games of series vs. Avs Wild will be without Joel Eriksson Ek and Jonas Brodin for first two games of series vs. Avs By PAT GRAHAM AP Sports Writer DENVER (AP) --- The Minnesota Wild will be without forward Joel Eriksson Ek and defenseman Jonas Brodin for the first two games of their second-round series against the Colorado Avalanche because of lower-body injuries. Neither player made the trip to Denver. Wild coach John Hynes said the team is still "making a couple decisions on the lineup" ahead of Game 1 on Sunday night. The Avalanche will be without defenseman Josh Manson, who missed the series clincher against the Los Angeles Kings last Sunday with an upper-body injury. Avs coach Jared Bednar said Nick Blankenburg will slide into Manson's place. The team acquired Blankenburg in a deal with Nashville on March 4. "He's played good in the time he's been with us," Bednar said. "We got him for a reason --- like the way he moves, like the way he moves the puck. He plays with a little bite. He's got to stay within himself. It's going to be a challenge for him tonight, because the thing we'll miss with (Manson) is the size, the strength, the physicality." Eriksson Ek had three goals and two assists in the Wild's first-round series win over Dallas. He finished with a 56.4% faceoff win rate. Danila Yurov and Hunter Haight could be possibilities to take Eriksson Ek's place. "Ekky's a big part of the team," Hynes said. "When you lose a guy that plays that many situations, you have to do it collectively as a group, and it's not all on one guy." Brodin didn't play in Game 6 against Dallas. Hynes said given the break between Games 2 and 3 --- the teams play Tuesday and not again until Saturday --- that "both those guys will be reevaluated and see where it goes from there." ___ AP NHL playoffs: https://apnews.com/hub/stanley-cup and https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

	Copyright DTN. All rights reserved. Disclaimer.