The Minnesota Wild are swapping out one forward in favor of another. Michael Russo of The Athletic reports the Wild organization has reassigned forward Travis Boyd to the American Hockey League with Jakub Lauko expected back on Tuesday.
It’s the third time the 31-year-old Boyd has been reassigned back to the AHL’s Iowa Wild this season. The Hopkins, Minnesota native has only made two appearances for the Wild this season going scoreless while averaging 7:39 of ice time per game.
His production in Iowa has been understandably more fruitful. It’s his first stretch in the AHL since the 2019-20 season and he’s collected two goals and 11 points in 13 games. The AHL Wild will now have their third-highest scorer back as they look to stay competitive in a top-heavy AHL Central Division.
Lauko, who’s been on Minnesota’s injured reserve since November 26th due to a lower-body injury, is expected to return to the lineup against the Utah Hockey Club on Tuesday. He won’t help fill the voids in the top-six forward group but will add a stabilizing presence to the bottom of the forward core.
He’s skated in 21 games throughout his first year in Minnesota adding two goals and four points overall. Lauko will provide a more physical presence compared to Boyd and should cause some trepidation from opposing teams if he’s placed on a line with Yakov Trenin.