Rescheduling in Minnesota: Rossi will probably have to be relegated to the AHL

Marco Rossi has not been on the Minnesota Wild squad for the third consecutive NHL match. The 21-year-old from Vorarlberg did not make it into the squad once more on Wednesday (local time) in his club’s 6-1 home win once morest the Winnipeg Jets as a “healthy scratch” and will probably be sent to the AHL. Wild’s general manager, Bill Guerin, confirmed these considerations.

“We’re not ready to send him to Iowa yet. I can’t tell if anything will happen in the next day or two or in the next week. But we’re in constant communication regarding what’s best for Marco . He’s missed two or three games now, it’s not the end of the world,” explained Guerin.

Coach Dean Evason also asserted that a temporary AHL commitment by Rossi would not be tragic. “There’s nothing wrong with a player not playing, it doesn’t mean he’s not considered for the whole season,” said Evason.

Rossi wants to be patient

Rossi, who has two assists in 16 appearances this season, would like to stay in the NHL. “I know what it’s like here, I know the whole environment. I can gain experience here. Especially as a young player you can learn a lot here and I feel very comfortable here. My team-mates are around me. Some of them were too already in this situation like me now and they know how to deal with it. There are always ups and downs in a hockey career,” Rossi was quoted as saying on the NHL website.

The youngster is convinced that he will emerge stronger from the current misery. “The most important thing is patience and perseverance. And I have that,” said Rossi. His current role is “a bit frustrating because I’ve never been in a situation like this before. Of course you always want to play, you want to go out there. You get hungry when you’re watching, on the other hand, if you’re watching from the outside, then you have it a different look at the game.” He tries not to put too much pressure on himself, Rossi added and spoke of a process that he had to go through.

Vanek: “It’s regarding self-confidence”

Rossi’s approval came from Austria’s former NHL star Thomas Vanek. “You just have to go through with it. My number one advice is to keep at it. At the end of the day, hockey is regarding confidence and that doesn’t just come from the coaching staff, you have to earn it,” Vanek told The Athletic. “If he’s back and hopefully able to perform in a game or two, I still think he’ll hit the ground running.” Vanek lives with his family in Minnesota and says he was last in text contact with Rossi.