Artem Anisimov ill, status uncertain against Wild

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Artem Anisimov is sick and his status right now is unknown for Sunday when the Blackhawks host the Minnesota Wild.

Coach Joel Quenneville said he'll see how Anisimov feels on Sunday morning. Following Saturday's practice, Quenneville said the Blackhawks "could" go with seven defensemen if Anisimov couldn't play. But late Saturday afternoon the Blackhawks recalled Nick Schmaltz from the Rockford IceHogs. Schmaltz had nine points (six goals, three assists) in 12 games with the IceHogs.

Corey Crawford gets the start vs. the Wild, who the Blackhawks will see for the first time all season. The Wild, who are two points behind the first-place Blackhawks in the Western Conference standings, play the Dallas Stars on Saturday night.

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Meanwhile, Marcus Kruger, who was seen wearing a plastic cast on his right hand/wrist recently, still hasn't started to skate. Quenneville originally hoped Kruger would hit the ice on Friday but that didn't happen. The original three-week timetable on Kruger's return may be extended a bit. 

"Not sure exactly when he'll get on the ice," Quenneville said. "We'll see if that timeline, three weeks, may be a little bit longer. But it's in and around there."

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