Picture this: It’s late in a one-goal game, and the Minnesota Wild coach needs six members of his roster to play a solid defensive shift.

Onto the ice, in front of goalie Filip Gustavsson, Hynes puts out defensemen Brock Faber and Jared Spurgeon, and a grit line of wingers Marcus Foligno and Nick Foligno with Nico Sturm at center.

Just seven games into the current season — with the Wild off to a 4-2-1 start following Tuesday night’s road loss to the Winnipeg Jets — having that sextet on the ice seems like a far-off dream. All six were unavailable because of a variety of injuries as the Wild saw a promising road game fade away in 5-2 loss at Canada Life Centre.

Gustavsson and Faber haven’t made it to the lineup in 2026-27, the goalie on the mend from offseason hip surgery and Faber’s status unknown after he was hit in the ear by a puck that fractured his skull in the exhibition season.

The Foligno brothers were both sidelined during a 1-1-1 eastern road trip. Sturm went on injured reserve after taking a puck to the head during Monday’s home win over Vegas. Spurgeon, the Wild captain, missed the Winnipeg trip with an upper body injury incurred against the Golden Knights. Hynes had no updates on his condition when he spoke to reporters who were in Winnipeg on Tuesday.

So, with the Wild filling the gaps with players such as rookie forward Rieger Lorenz, up-and-coming defenseman David Spacek and fourth-line forward Tyler Pitlick, Tuesday’s first period was indicative of how much Minnesota’s stars can mean in times of trouble.

Kirill Kaprizov scored two goals, and Quinn Hughes had an assist to increase his points streak to seven games.

Kaprizov most notably has five goals in his past three games and leads the NHL with eight total.

“He’s playing fast. He’s skating well. He’s really competing on pucks. He’s a highly talented guy that can score, but he’s getting himself in the scoring areas,” Hynes told reporters in Winnipeg. “He’s playing at a high pace. He’s scoring in different ways, which is what you’d like to see.

“So, that’s what we need from Kirill, and when he plays to his identity, which he has been, he’s a threat that’s very difficult to stop.”

There was some surprise league-wide when Kaprizov, whose $17 million annual salary over eight years is the highest in franchise history, began the season on the second line with countrymen Maxim Shabanov and Danila Yurov. That worked for a time, but as injuries have mounted, Hynes loaded his top line with offensive heavyweights, with Joel Eriksson Ek centering Kaprizov and Matt Boldy.

Those three have combined for eight goals in the past three games.

“We knew they were coming hard. We knew they were really aggressive. All three guys were aggressive,” Jets coach Scott Arniel said of that line. He admitted it took Winnipeg 20 minutes to find a way to counter them, or at least hold them off the board until lines two through four took the ice for Minnesota.

“We didn’t look for the perfect play. We just tried to get it past the three guys,” Arniel said. “And when we did that, all of a sudden our numbers were above their numbers, and it worked for us.”

The Wild had a day off on Wednesday before a home game versus St. Louis on Thursday night. Their next game is Sunday against Columbus.

Perhaps that will mean more healthy bodies available for Hynes, and more balance across four lines for Minnesota. Until then, the top trio has shown, at least in flashes, that it can do more than its part.