Wild recalls forward Nico Sturm from Iowa

ST. PAUL --Minnesota Wild General Manager Bill Guerin today announced the National Hockey League (NHL) club has recalled defenseman Greg Pateryn and forward Nico Sturm from the Iowa Wild of the American Hockey League (AHL) and placed captain Mikko Koivu (lower body) and Pateryn (lower body) on Injured Reserve.
Sturm, 24, has recorded 11 points (6-5=11) including two power-play goals and two game-winning goals in 23 games with Iowa this season. He has tallied four points (2-2=4) in his last four games and leads team rookies in scoring. Sturm ranks T-1st amongst AHL rookies in game-winning goals, T-4th in shots on goal (50) and T-9th in goals. The 6-foot-3, 206-pound native of Augsburg, Germany, was signed as a free agent by Minnesota on April 1, 2019 and made his NHL debut on April 4 vs. Boston. He registered seven shots on goal in two games with the Wild last season. Sturm wears sweater No. 7 with Minnesota.

He led Clarkson University in scoring and assists with 45 points (14-31=45) in 39 games and won 392-of-677 face-offs taken (57.9%) as a junior last season. The team co-captain also led the Golden Knights with a plus-23 rating, ranked T-2nd in goals, third in shots on goal (94), and tallied 12 multi-point games. Sturm ranked T-4th in assists, T-8th in scoring and T-11th in points per game (1.15) in the NCAA last season. He was named the ECAC Hockey Best Defensive Forward for the second consecutive season, a Top Ten Hobey Baker Award Finalist, a finalist for the ECAC Hockey Player of the Year Award, to the 2019 ECAC Hockey All-Tournament Team and an ECAC First-Team All-League selection in 2018-19.
Koivu, 36, has tallied 12 points (2-10=12) in 28 games this season. He leads Minnesota in face-offs won (246) and takeaways (22), ranks T-4th in assists, T-5th in plus/minus rating and leads team forwards in TOI/game (17:34). Koivu recorded his 700th career NHL point with an assist and the game-deciding shootout goal in his 1,000th NHL game vs. DAL on Dec. 1.
Pateryn, 29, was assigned to Iowa on a conditioning assignment Monday and skated in Iowa's 4-1 loss at San Antonio Wednesday. He underwent bilateral core muscle repair surgery on Oct. 1 and has not appeared in a game with Minnesota this season. He tallied seven points (1-6=7) in a career-high 80 games last season with the Wild and ranked second on the team in hits (144) and third in blocked shots (118).