With veteran defensemen Brock Faber, Jonas Brodin and Jared Spurgeon all missing with various ailments and newcomer David Jiricek making his Wild debut, the back end was sure to be at least part

The Minnesota Wild hosted the Colorado Avalanche for their first season meeting on Thursday evening, Jan. 9. The Wild were still without Kirill Kaprizov, Brock Faber, Jared Spurgeon, and Jakub Lauko.

A skier died in an avalanche, Colorado officials said. On Jan. 7, a backcountry skier was “caught, buried, and killed in an avalanche on Red Mountain Number 3” near Bollywood, according to the Colorado Avalanche Information Center.

The Colorado Avalanche Information Center is urging backcountry travelers to exercise extra caution across the Colorado mountains through the weekend as dangerous avalanche conditions persist.