While watching the Minnesota Wild struggle out of the gates this season, fans of the team could comfort themselves by looking ahead a little bit.

“We’ll be OK when Mats Zuccarello gets back,” they could tell themselves. Or, the faceoffs will be less of an issue when we get Nico Sturm.

John Hynes couldn’t play that game.

“You’re aware of when players are going to come back, but in this league, and in this job, you have to be so focused on the present,” the Wild coach said Tuesday.

The Wild went into Tuesday’s game against the San Jose Sharks at Grand Casino Arena having won four of their past five games to get themselves out of an early funk. The last two games included Zuccarello, who missed the first 15 games after having surgery to repair a lower body injury.

“I tried not to do the

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