Wild will be without Joel Eriksson Ek and Jonas Brodin for first two games of series vs. Avs

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.”

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AP NHL playoffs: https://apnews.com/hub/stanley-cup and https://apnews.com/hub/nhl