Minnesota
Minnesota Wild take on Winnipeg Jets in matchup of top two NHL teams
ST. PAUL, Minn. — It’s a battle of the top two NHL teams as the Minnesota Wild (13-3-4) and Winnipeg Jets (17-4) square off Monday night in St. Paul.
Monday’s game marks the second meeting between these teams this season. The Jets won the last matchup 2-1 in overtime back on Oct. 13.
“From the first time we played them, even through now, watching different game and going through the scouting stuff, they’re playing really solid,” said Wild Head Coach John Hynes. “I think their record is indicative of the style of game that they’re playing, the commitment that they’re getting from their guys.”
Kirill Kaprizov will be a gametime decision, Hynes said. The 27-year-old hasn’t played since Thursday, when he collided with Drake Caggiula during a game against the Edmonton Oilers and suffered a leg injury.
“I think he’s excited,” Hynes said of Kaprizov. “He feels good. He’s ready to go. He doesn’t like missing games. We’re hoping he has some goals in his pocket that we could have used last game, but can use them tonight.”
Kaprizov, who has 13 goals and 21 assists on the season, participated in morning skate on Monday.
This week marks one year since Hynes took over as Minnesota’s head coach. His stamp on the team is working.
“He understands how we have to play and what needs to be said in certain situations,” said left wing Marcus Foligno. “But for me, the biggest thing is how well-prepared he is for the games that we play and he makes us all feel really confident going into those games.”
Puck drop is at 7 p.m.
The Portland Trail Blazers picked Minnesota Timberwolves assistant Micah Nori as their next head coach on Tuesday, after making the playoffs for the first time in five years under the direction of interim coach Tiago Splitter.
Nori, who spent the past five seasons with the Timberwolves, has interviewed for multiple head coach vacancies, including the Chicago Bulls earlier this month, the New York Knicks last year, and the Los Angeles Lakers in 2024.
Nori, 52, was the lead assistant under Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch while the club made the playoffs each season, won five series, and reached the Western Conference finals in 2023 and 2024. Nori, who began his NBA career in 1998 as a scout with the Toronto Raptors, has also been an assistant for the Raptors, the Sacramento Kings, the Denver Nuggets, and the Detroit Pistons. His son, Dante, is a minor league baseball player in the Philadelphia Phillies organization.
Splitter, who was hired last week as head coach of the Chicago Bulls, was promoted from assistant to interim coach when then-head coach Chauncey Billups was arrested in October in a federal takedown of a sprawling gambling operation. Billups has pleaded not guilty to charges of wire fraud and money laundering.
The Blazers went 42-40 with a five-game loss to NBA finalist San Antonio in the first round of the playoffs, the first postseason appearance and first time they finished with a winning record in five years.
The news comes a day after the Wolves reportedly traded three-time All-Star Julius Randle to the Brooklyn Nets in a three-team trade that sends Nic Claxton to the Chicago Bulls.
The Minnesota Timberwolves are reportedly trading three-time All-Star Julius Randle to the Brooklyn Nets in a three-team trade that sends Nic Claxton to the Chicago Bulls.
Minnesota is sending the 28th pick to the Nets and will be receiving the No. 33 pick that will be made in the second round on Wednesday night, according to a person who spoke to the Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the deal has not received the required approvals from the league office.
For Minnesota, the trade opens up a slew of financial possibilities. It creates a $33 million trade exception, plus gives the Timberwolves room they can use to re-sign Ayo Dosunmu and target more players in free agency.
Randle, a three-time All-Star, will be moving to his fifth team after stints with New York, the Los Angeles Lakers, New Orleans and the Timberwolves. He averaged 21.1 points this past season, though shot just 39% from the field and 24% from 3-point range in Minnesota’s 12 playoff contests.
Claxton just finished his seventh NBA season, all with Brooklyn. He averaged 11.7 points this past season.
The 2026 NBA Draft begins Tuesday night.
At Senator Westrom’s St. Paul office, visitors are greeted by the classic Minnesota state flag, which the DFL leaders should not have taken away from Minnesotans.
However, local communities have the authority to keep flying it, like many have done, and Senator Westrom encourages communities interested in keeping it to do so.
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