GDT #33: Blues @ Wild | 6:00 pm CT | TNT, 101 ESPN

[theohall]

The Minnesota Wild and St. Louis Blues will return to their roots when they face off in an outdoor rink Saturday night in the NHL Winter Classic at Target Field in Minneapolis.

One thing is for sure: The ice will not melt.

The high temperature for Saturday is forecast to be minus-3 degrees. The low temperature is forecast to be a whopping minus-21 degrees.

Wild forward Nick Bjugstad is no stranger to the elements. The 29-year-old grew up in the state and played collegiately for the Minnesota Golden Gophers.

"I remember my dad taking me out (as a kid) and my feet being so cold," Bjugstad said. "He'd run my feet under cold water. That would actually warm my feet up, and then we would go back out. It was the best time to play hockey as a kid and the most fun."

Wild forward Marcus Foligno agreed. He grew up playing outdoor hockey in Sudbury, Ontario.

"It's so much fun," Foligno said. "After school, you tell your buddies, 'Hey, let's meet here at 5 o'clock,' and then before you know it you have 20 people out there playing."

Both teams have had their share of fun this season heading into the marquee matchup.

St. Louis has 41 points in 32 games and has outscored opponents 110-87.

Meanwhile, Minnesota has 40 points in 30 games and has outscored opponents 112-92.

This will be the second outdoor game for each team. The Wild cruised to a 6-1 win over the Chicago Blackhawks in the 2016 NHL Stadium Series at TCF Bank Stadium on the University of Minnesota's campus. The Blues played outside in the 2017 NHL Winter Classic at Busch Stadium, where they posted a 4-1 win over the Blackhawks.

Vladimir Tarasenko scored two goals in a span of less than two minutes in the Blues' first outdoor game. He is one of three players still on the team for St. Louis who took part in the 2017 contest, joining Colton Parayko and David Perron.

This season, Tarasenko has 32 points (13 goals, 19 assists) in 32 games. He said he was looking forward to another outdoor experience.

"Not many teams have a chance to play (in the Winter Classic), and this is my second time," Tarasenko said. "So I'm really looking forward to it, even if it is (as) cold as in Siberia."

Blues head coach Craig Berube said the team's equipment staff would do their best.

"I believe they'll take care of the players and keep them as warm as they can," Berube said. "Our strength coach has already discussed some things with them that they can do, which is important. ... They're going to do what they can do to keep everybody safe and warm."

Kirill Kaprizov leads the Wild with 36 points (12 goals, 24 assists) in 30 games on the season. Ryan Hartman is next on the club with 26 points (14 goals, 12 assists) in 30 games.

Wild defenseman Matt Dumba said he was eager to experience the stadium's atmosphere.

"There's something about it, just the energy of it," Dumba said. "That comes from where we first fell in love with hockey and the reasons why we did."

Blues projected lineup

Brandon Saad -- Ryan O'Reilly -- David Perron
Jordan Kyrou -- Robert Thomas -- Vladimir Tarasenko
Logan Brown -- Tyler Bozak -- Pavel Buchnevich
Klim Kostin -- Ivan Barbashev -- Oskar Sundqvist

Niko Mikkola -- Colton Parayko
Torey Krug -- Justin Faulk
Marco Scandella -- Scott Perunovich

Jordan Binnington
Charlie Lindgren

Scratched: Nathan Walker, Jake Walman, Alexei Toropchenko
Injured: Brayden Schenn (upper body), James Neal (upper body), Ville Husso (lower body)
COVID-19 protocol: Robert Bortuzzo, Dakota Joshua

Wild projected lineup

Kirill Kaprizov -- Ryan Hartman -- Mats Zuccarello
Marcus Foligno -- Frederick Gaudreau -- Kevin Fiala
Jordan Greenway -- Nico Sturm -- Brandon Duhaime
Rem Pitlick -- Victor Rask -- Nick Bjugstad

Calen Addison -- Matt Dumba
Alex Goligoski -- Jon Merrill
Jordie Benn -- Dmitry Kulikov

Cam Talbot
Kaapo Kahkonen

Scratched: none
Injured: Jared Spurgeon (lower body), Joel Eriksson Ek (upper body)
COVID-19 protocol: Jonas Brodin

Status report

Schenn could play for the first time since Dec. 12. The forward has missed four games. … Barbashev, Buchnevich and Sundqvist will play after each missed the 4-2 win against the Edmonton Oilers on Wednesday. Barbashev and Sundqvist were in NHL COVID-19 protocol; Buchnevich was out with a non-COVID related illness. ... Brodin could come off the COVID-19 protocol list in time to play, Wild coach Dean Evason said. If he does, the defenseman would replace Addison.

[theohall]

I'd flip Barbashev and Bozak in that lineup to keep him with Buchnevich, unless they are concerned about Barbashev's energy level. Considering these are projections, I strongly suspect it'll be Brown-Barbashev-Buchnevich.

[gaijin]

I'll be sporting my new WC jersey my wife bought me for Christmas.

Can't believe how cold it is going to be for the game. Good luck to the boys.

[theohall]

I wouldn't be surprised if it winds up being these three lines, instead of the current projected ones:

Logan Brown -- Robert Thomas -- Jordan Kyrou
Pavel Buchnevich -- Ivan Barbashev -- Vladimir Tarasenko
Klim Kostin -- Tyler Bozak -- Oskar Sundqvist

And there is still a slim possibility of Schenn playing. Obviously, Kostin would sit and I'd expect to see this

Brayden Schenn -- Robert Thomas -- Jordan Kyrou
Pavel Buchnevich -- Ivan Barbashev -- Vladimir Tarasenko
Logan Brown -- Tyler Bozak -- Oskar Sundqvist

We'll see.

[gaijin]

Anyone know if the game will be available to stream on ESPN+? Or will it be blacked out?

[theohall]

TNT only. TNT games are the only ones not available on ESPN+.

[glen a richter]

Going down to -14… better them than me.

Good luck and don’t get frostbite out there.

[Portland Blues]

Binner takes the first penalty of the game.

[Portland Blues]

Nice!

[Portland Blues]

And we give it right back with a sort of own goal.

[theohall]

It is so rare seeing Parayko get beat up the ice in a one-on-one, which indicates just how fast Kaprizov can skate.

[Portland Blues]

Wow! Great play by Kyrou.

[theohall]

This PP - both units - the players not being stationary is awesome!! Saad as the net front guy was almost never stationary on the 1st unit allowing Perron and ROR to almost score twice. Kyrou - most talented player on this roster and it is showing.

[theohall]

2 G + 2 A in one period!!! Are you flipping kidding me, Jordan Kyrou?!?!?!?!

[theohall]

Meanwhile, the Wild can only score off lucky deflections.

[Portland Blues]

Meanwhile, the Wild can only score off lucky deflections.

The one off of Binner's noggin was a super bonus for the Wild.

[theohall]

Was going to say expect the Penguins game to be a "let down" type game for the Blues with the way they've played lately along with coming off the Winter Classic. With the way the Blues haven't played this 3rd period, I don't expect that any more, because this is the kind of thing Chief yells about.

[theohall]

You'd think with an empty net Kyrou would play at some point in the final 6 minutes of the game. He hasn't been on the ice, yet, with the empty net.

[theohall]

It's funny listening to Dean Evason when a reporter asked about the Wild not having played in a long time, considering the Blues missed so many days and didn't miss a beat vs the Oilers.