By CHRIS ALTRUDA
STATS Editor
The Minnesota Wild's struggling power play could be getting a very big boost.
Left wing Pierre-Marc Bouchard is expected to make his season debut Wednesday night when the Wild host the Phoenix Coyotes.
Bouchard has played just once after taking a hit to the head in March 2009, appearing only in last season's opener and missing 112 of a possible 113 games. After pushing himself hard and not feeling any lingering effects in the Wild's practice before returning to Minnesota, Bouchard thinks he is finally ready to resume his career.
"The last seven to 10 days I've been feeling pretty good and pretty much symptom free," he told the Wild's official website. "... I'm really excited, that's for sure, but I'm also a little nervous. It's been a long time and I've been waiting for that day to play again.
"It seems like it's going to be my first NHL game all over again."
Bouchard had four straight seasons of at least 30 assists prior to 2009-10, and will likely see the bulk of his ice time on the power play. His playmaking skills should immediately help a team that has gone 1 for 19 with the man advantage the last seven games, including 0 for 3 in Monday's 3-0 loss at Calgary.
"Those are the moments you have to capitalize on but you have to give them credit - they had good penalty killing tonight and their goalie was very good," Wild captain Mikko Koivu said.
Despite its recent struggles, Minnesota still ranks third on the power play at 24.1 percent.
A focus on the penalty kill would do Phoenix (11-7-5) some good in this game. The Coyotes allowed two power-play goals in a 3-0 defeat at Nashville on Tuesday and took seven penalties overall.
"We had some guys really play hard, but in the end, you can't take penalties like that and expect to be successful," Phoenix coach Dave Tippett said. "That's something that will be addressed."
There was one bright spot for the Coyotes as second-year center Kyle Turris returned after a three-game absence due to an upper-body injury. The third overall pick of the 2007 draft has not recorded a point in his last five games.
Veteran center Ray Whitney, who leads Phoenix with 13 assists and 16 points, has recorded five consecutive multipoint games versus the Wild with three goals and eight assists in that span.
Phoenix swept the four-game series in 2009-10 and have won three straight at Minnesota. Radim Vrbata had goals in three of those games, including the game-winner in the most recent meeting - a 3-2 victory on Feb. 10 at the Xcel Energy Center.
