Wild's Cooke ready to 'play physical without being riskful' after 7-game suspension
The Minnesota Wild can welcome Matt Cooke back to their lineup for Game 4 against the Chicago Blackhawks on Friday after Cooke served the seventh and final game of his suspension for a knee-on-knee hit on Colorado Avalanche defenseman Tyson Barrie.
Despite the suspension, Cooke maintains he is a different player from his early days of head-hunting:
Matt Cooke: "I still believe I'm in a good spot as far as the way I approach the game to go out and play physical without being riskful."
— Chad Graff (@ChadGraff) May 7, 2014
Riskful or not, Minnesota should benefit from Cooke's return. Cooke was on the ice for a lot of defensive-zone faceoffs during the regular season, allowing scorers like Zach Parise, Mikko Koivu and Jason Pominville to focus on offensive starts.
The Wild can tie their series with Chicago at two games apiece with a victory on Friday.