For all of the Minnesota Wild’s encouraging talk about increased roles and a “next man up” attitude in the face of a crippling run of injuries, some nights there are only so many chess pieces you can remove from the board before you hear “checkmate.”

On Thursday, Minnesota looked like a team in regrouping mode, as a hungry Colorado team built an early lead and handed the Wild a 6-1 loss.

The Wild, who were again playing without leading scorer Kirill Kaprizov and three of their top defensemen, looked like a team for which the endless entries on the injury report are starting to wear on their bodies and their psyches.

Minnesota got a first period goal from Zach Bogosian along with 21 saves from goalie Filip Gustavsson but saw their four-game winning streak come to an emphatic end.

With Marc-Andre Fleury on the bench for two periods but battling an illness, Gustavsson was the only option in goal, and was victimized three times in the opening half of the third period, as the Wild — who have been the NHL’s top road team in the first half of the season — fell to a pedestrian 11-9-1 at Xcel Energy Center.

With veteran defensemen Brock Faber, Jonas Brodin and Jared Spurgeon all missing with various ailments and newcomer David Jiricek making his Wild debut, the back end was sure to be at least part of the story versus Colorado. And that was clearly the case in the opening 20 minutes.

The Avalanche struck first when the Wild defense was caught flat-footed and Josh Manson’s long lead pass found Logan O’Connor unattended at the blue line. The Colorado forward ripped a low shot past Gustavsson before even four minutes had ticked off in the game.

Minnesota killed the game’s first penalty, but Colorado doubled the lead just seconds after both teams returned to full strength. Wild defenseman Declan Chisholm’s muffed pass from behind his own net was intercepted by Ross Colton, who had a short shot to put the visitors up 2-0.

The Wild finally answered late in the first when Bogosian took advantage of some sloppy defensive zone play by the Avalanche, and popped a rising shot into the upper right corner to re-establish a one-goal game. For Bogosian, it was his fourth goal of the season and his second in as many games.

Minnesota made a push early in the middle period and had Colorado goalie Mackenzie Blackwood scrambling a few times. But instead of a tying goal, fans saw Mikko Rantanen use Bogosian as a screen, then pop in a wrist shot for his team-leading 25th goal of the season as Colorado took a 3-1 lead into the locker room for the second intermission.

Again Minnesota pushed to get back on the board early in the third. And again, their efforts ended up for naught, as Colorado’s Parker Kelly increased the visitors’ lead, followed in quick succession by two more.

Blackwood finished with 24 saves for Colorado, which was playing the second of back-to-back road games following a loss in Chicago on Wednesday.

The Wild head out on the road for their next two, visiting San Jose for the second time this season on Saturday night, then facing the Golden Knights on Sunday in Las Vegas.

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