Report: Wild's Josh Harding suffers off-ice ankle injury

The Minnesota Wild will start training camp without Josh Harding, who hurt his ankle away from the ice according to a report in the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

Harding was looking forward to starting the season with a clean bill of health after missing the latter half of last season due to multiple sclerosis complications. His stellar statistics from 2013-14 (1.65 goals-against average, .933 save percentage) made him the clear front-runner in Minnesota's starting goaltender battle.

The injury leaves veteran Niklas Backstrom as Minnesota's only healthy goaltender under contract. Darcy Kuemper remains unsigned despite outperforming Backstrom in 26 appearances last season.

If Harding's ankle injury is serious, the Wild could turn to the free agent market for an answer. Veterans such as Tomas Vokoun and Martin Brodeur are still available. The team could also turn to Ilya Bryzgalov, who was 7-1-3 and made nine playoff appearances in a brief stint with Minnesota.