ST. PAUL, Minn., April 8 (UPI) -- Minnesota Wild defenseman Nick Schultz is recovering from an appendectomy and will miss the start of the NHL playoffs this week, the team says.
Schultz, who is a plus-9 in 81 games this season with two goals and 15 assists, missed the Wild's last regular-season game Sunday because he wasn't feeling well and wound up at the hospital after not being able to practice Monday, the St. Paul Pioneer Press reported Tuesday.
Minnesota plays Colorado in Game 1 of a best-of-seven series Wednesday at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul.
"We're not putting any time frame on it," Wild General Manager Doug Risebrough said of the prospects for Schultz's return to the ice. "We'll deal with it in terms of how his recovery is. It was a normal procedure."
Coincidentally, Colorado center Paul Stastny had an appendectomy Jan. 17 and didn't come off the injured list until Feb. 22.
The Wild, who won their first Northwest Division title this season, also lost defenseman Kurtis Foster for the season in late March when he broke a leg in a game, leaving the team with six healthy defensemen.
