PITTSBURGH — Jared Spurgeon will play for the Wild tonight against the Penguins at PPG Paints Arena, his first game since an overtime loss at Winnipeg on Sept. 20.

Spurgeon met the team in Philadelphia last Friday during the five-game leg of this seven-game road trip, which ends here tonight. He practiced with the team twice before Tuesday’s morning skate. His six-game absence was related to rehabilitation from a pair of season-ending surgeries he had last winter.

“Just some stuff going on from maybe the last exhibition game going in, so (I) just had to take some different routes medically and try and get back,” Spurgeon said.

Spurgeon, 34, played in only 16 games last season. The longtime team captain had surgery to repair his hip in early February, then back surgery in March. General manager Bill Guerin has said it’s unclear whether this will happen again as Spurgeon makes his way back to full health.

Head coach John Hynes said he was hopeful that his top-pair defenseman is back. He is set to play with Jonas Brodin against the Penguins.

“What we had talked about prior, before, was (that) it seemed like it was gonna be back, to be part of the process, whether that was gonna be in training camp or start of the regular season,” Hynes said. “But I think the fact that he’s been back so quick and he looks good … We don’t know about the future, but right now, (he) looks good.”

Said Spurgeon: “Hopefully this is the last of it, but you never really know. So, we’re doing a really good job of keeping the treatment going and everything like that.”

Tonight’s puck drop is set for 6.

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