The Wild announced Monday they’ve recalled center Hunter Haight from AHL Iowa. He was sent down on Saturday, but since he got into game action for Iowa last night, he’s eligible to come back up today. Minnesota didn’t fill his roster spot during his two-day absence from the active roster.
Haight will continue serving as a fourth-line/press box option as the Wild continue to deal with a banged-up forward group while trying to squeeze more offense out of their bottom six. He won’t have a particularly clear path to playing time with 14 forwards on the active roster. Tyler Pitlick is on waivers today but is expected to remain with the team if he clears instead of being assigned to Iowa, Michael Russo of The Athletic reports.
His recent demotion was more about getting the 21-year-old playing time. The Wild have done a good job of that while ferrying him between leagues multiple times this year. He’s still managed 14 appearances for Iowa, notching four goals and an assist with a -6 rating. Selected No. 47 overall in the 2022 draft, he projects as a No. 3 center long-term and is a consensus top-15 prospect in Minnesota’s system. He entered the season ranked #9 according to Elite Prospects and #14 according to Scott Wheeler of The Athletic.
He’s coming off a 20-goal, 34-point showing as a rookie for Iowa in 67 games last year. It may not be an overly impressive showing at face value, but the team’s weak roster meant Haight checked in second on the team in goals and fifth in points.
Despite this being Haight’s fourth recall of the season, he was only in the lineup for Minnesota’s first two games and hasn’t played since. He averaged 9:22 of ice time across the pair of appearances and went without a point, recording a -2 rating. He went 7-for-16 on faceoffs (43.8%), and the Wild lost the shot-attempt battle 28-11 in his 5-on-5 minutes despite some advantageous offensive zone deployment.
While Ryan Hartman and Vladimir Tarasenko have come off injured reserve in recent days, the Wild’s forward group is still missing Marcus Foligno, Vinnie Hinostroza, and top-line center Marco Rossi. Haight certainly won’t factor in when everyone is healthy but in the interim, he’s worked his way up enough on the organization’s depth chart to continue serving as a depth option when required.