According to The Athletic’s Michael Russo, Minnesota Wild forward Marcus Foligno is expected to undergo season-ending surgery on a lower-body injury.
The Wild haven’t announced the exact injury but Foligno has been battling an ailment throughout the second half of the season. The 32-year-old missed a month of action shortly after the All-Star break and returned on March 8 but had just a goal and an assist in eight games before last playing in a March 23 overtime loss to the St. Louis Blues.
The loss stings in the short term as the Wild sit eight points behind the Los Angeles Kings for the final playoff spot in the Western Conference after forfeiting a point by pulling goalie Filip Gustavsson in Saturday’s 2-1 overtime loss to the Vegas Golden Knights.
While the Wild won’t have Foligno for the home stretch the injury also casts a shadow over their long-term prospects.
Foligno’s production has tailed off as he battled injuries after recording a career-high 23 goals and 42 points during the 2021-22 season. Foligno had just seven goals, 14 assists and 21 points in 65 games in 2022-23 and had just 10 goals, 12 assists and 22 points in 55 games this season.
General Manager Bill Guerin signed Foligno to a four-year, $16 million contract extension before the season, however, and the contract carries a full no-movement clause through the 2025-26 season and a 15-team, no-trade clause over the final two years of the deal.
Foligno is also one of four Wild forwards locked in through the 2027-28 season, joining Matt Boldy, Joel Eriksson Ek and Frederick Gaudreau.
