Whether it’s because they’ve played together on the same line for the past season-plus and play with an identical tenacity, or simply because their last names both begin with a D — and the “doo” sound — Wild fans tend to think of Connor Dewar and Brandon Duhaime as a, uh, duo.

“We do it, too,” Wild head coach Dean Evason said Thursday.

Hence their roles as Dewey #1 and Dewey #2, and their identical rugby shirts, in the team’s popular Gus Bus ad.

That’s OK with the young forwards.

“Most times,” Dewar acknowledged, “you’ll probably find us hanging out” together.

In terms of North America, they couldn’t come from more different places — Duhaime, 26, from Parkland, Fla., and Dewar, 24, from Manitoba — but they clicked as roommates in their first year together with the Wild’s AHL team in Des Moines.

They played on the same line there, as well.

“Yeah, I mean, anytime you can be with a guy for a while, you kind of build chemistry,” Duhaime said. “I would say that’s a big factor.”

Center Dewar and left wing Duhaime became linked in another way during Tuesday’s 5-2 victory at Montreal when they each scored a short-handed goal in the same penalty kill, 26 seconds apart. They’re the third pair of Minnesota players to do it, joining Wes Walz and Antii Laaksonen (2000) and Ryan Hartman and Sam Steel (2023).

Evason has been pleased with their play this season on a line with Pat Maroon, who joined the team after being acquired in a deal with Tampa Bay this summer. Before Thursday night’s game against the Los Angeles Kings, Evason called that trio “arguably our best line” through three games.

“We just kind of came up through the organization together,” Dewar said. “We’ve been playing together for years.”

Star quality

One of the best bits of the Gus Bus spot is Dewar, sitting in the window seat next to Duhaime, breathing on the window and writing in the condensation with his finger.

That was a Dewar improvisation.

“I was trying to think, ‘What would a little kid do?’ ” he said.

The ad, part of the team’s “Not Weird. Wild” campaign, has attracted 1.1 million views on the Wild’s Twitter account and more than 22,000 views on their YouTube channel.

Walker up

Sammy Walker, one of the Wild’s top prospects in Iowa, was set to join the big-league team on Thursday as part of the second line with center Joel Eriksson Ek and left wing Marcus Johansson, slotting into the spot vacated when Matt Boldy was sidelined by an upper-body injury.

The three had never played together before.

“Whoever you’re playing with, you just try to do your best and try to score,” Walker said. “You’re just trying to play hockey.”

The Wild are using the NHL’s emergency personnel rules to add Walker after playing a skater short in Montreal. Walker scored three preseason goals and was one of the last players cut in camp, mostly because the Wild — still being penalized for buying out the contracts of Zach Parise and Ryan Suter — didn’t have enough salary cap space.

Evason said Walker was among four candidates to get the callup from Des Moines.

Cap updates

The Wild placed Alex Goligoski on long-term injured reserve on Wednesday, requiring the veteran blue liner to miss at least 10 games and 24 days of the season.

Dakota Mermis had already been called up before Goligoski was hurt, and played well on Tuesday in Montreal, but the LTIR designation offers the Wild salary cap relief if they want to recall an extra defenseman even though the team is technically within $51,000 of the NHL’s $83.5 million cap.

Asked if he anticipates the Wild doing that, Evason said, “Beats the snot out of me.”

That will be up to general manager Bill Guerin. If that’s the case, Evason said, Minnesota and Iowa staffs “will all make a decision together.”

Briefly

Evason said Jared Spurgeon, out since suffering an upper-body injury in an Oct. 5 preseason game, has begun skating. “It’s obviously positive that he’s on the ice,” the coach said. … Boldy has yet to begin skating since being hurt last Saturday in Toronto.

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The Patriots again listed 20 players on their injury report Thursday, but removed running back Rhamondre Stevenson while adding rookie receiver Kayshon Boutte.

Boutte, who’s been a healthy scratch for every game since the season opener, has a new hamstring injury.

The Pats were again down tight end Hunter Henry, outside linebacker Josh Uche and cornerback Jonathan Jones on Thursday. Their availabilities for Sunday’s game against the Bills are now in doubt after missing two straight practices. Left tackle Trent Brown (chest) was upgraded to limited.

In Buffalo, the Bills upgraded quarterback Josh Allen (right shoulder) to full participation.

Both teams’ complete injury reports are below.

NEW ENGLAND

Did not participate

TE Hunter Henry, Ankle

CB Jonathan Jones, Ankle

OL Riley Reiff, Knee

LB Josh Uche, Knee

DL Keion White, Concussion

Limited participation

OT Trent Brown, Chest

DB Jabrill Peppers, Knee

WR JuJu Smith-Schuster, Concussions

C David Andrews, Ankle

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DL Christian Barmore, Knee

DB Cody Davis, Knee

WR Demario Douglas, Concussion

S Kyle Dugger, Foot

DL Trey Flowers, Foot

DL Davon Godchaux, Ankle

DB Jack Jones, Hamstring

OL Mike Onwenu, Ankle

G Cole Strange, Knee

CB Shaun Wade, Shoulder

WR Kayshon Boutte, Hamstring

BUFFALO

Did not participate

RB Damien Harris, Neck / Concussion

TE Quintin Morris, Ankle

DT Ed Oliver, Toe

Limited participation

CB Kaiir Elam, Ankle

DB Cam Lewis, Shoulder

Full participation

QB Josh Allen, Right Shoulder

T Spencer Brown, Knee

DE A.J. Epenesa, Quad

TE Dalton Kincaid, Concussion

TE Dawson Knox, Wrist

DE Greg Rousseau, Foot

CB Dane Jackson, Foot

Since news began trickling out about the Red Sox search for a new head of baseball operations, one of the more intriguing names bandied about has been Craig Breslow.

The former Red Sox pitcher and current Chicago Cubs assistant general manager and senior vice president of pitching is reportedly among a handful of candidates known to have interviewed for the job, and on Wednesday night Patrick Mooney of The Athletic reported that Breslow is in advanced discussions to join Boston’s front office.

Whether those discussions ultimately bear fruit remains to be seen, and it’s not clear if Breslow would immediately ascend to the top job or slot in as the No. 2 under a new president of baseball operations. Either way, the 43-year-old Breslow appears to have a real shot.

That might seem surprising for some, especially fans who feel like Breslow was pitching out of the Red Sox bullpen just yesterday, but the lefty has always been regarded as one of the most intelligent people in the game. Once he made the jump to the front office ranks he quickly established himself as a rising star, and whether it’s in Boston, Chicago or someplace else it’s clear he has a bright future ahead of him.

Rave reviews

Breslow pitched for 12 seasons in the big leagues as a left-handed reliever between 2005-17, including five with the Red Sox. His best season came in 2013, when he was a key member of Boston’s World Series championship squad and posted a 1.81 ERA over 59.2 innings and 61 appearances.

Following his retirement Breslow was recruited by Theo Epstein to join the Cubs front office, and since starting in 2019 he’s become deeply involved in the organization’s efforts to overhaul its pitching development program. He was elevated to director of pitching and later to his current assistant GM role, and where the Cubs previously struggled to develop homegrown arms Breslow’s efforts have produced a wave of talented pitchers who are already making an impact in the majors.

Look no further than the strides made this year by Cy Young contender Justin Steele and by 2021 first-round pick Jordan Wicks. For an organization like Boston that has struggled to consistently develop high-end pitching talent, Breslow’s track record has obvious appeal.

Right place, right time

One common refrain we’ve heard throughout the search process is that potential targets have declined to pursue the Red Sox job due to family considerations.

In Breslow’s case, the family element might actually work in Boston’s favor.

Originally from Connecticut, Breslow has deep ties to New England and still lives a short drive from Fenway Park. The Yale graduate has often worked remotely from his home in Newton since joining the Cubs front office, so while many candidates have balked at uprooting their families to come to Boston, Breslow’s circumstances would make the role uniquely appealing.

Breslow also has familiarity with most of the front office dating back to his playing days and presumably a good understanding of how the organization currently functions. If Breslow is hired, that familiarity could help him hit the ground running and implement the changes he feels will help the Red Sox unlock their potential.

Worth the risk?

The downside to Breslow’s candidacy is even compared to many other recently retired players who have successfully transitioned to the front office world, he is very inexperienced. Breslow is not the Cubs top decision-maker or even it’s No. 2 man, and so far he’s thrived in a comparatively narrow role with fewer responsibilities related to executing transactions, negotiating contracts and running a baseball operations department as a whole.

That being said, Breslow would inherit a well-established front office infrastructure including executive vice president of baseball operations Brian O’Halloran and the trio of assistant GMs Eddie Romero, Raquel Ferreira and Michael Groopman to help handle all of those things. Alternatively, the Red Sox could elevate Romero or hire another outside candidate as president of baseball operations and install Breslow as GM, which would still represent a big promotion from his current job in Chicago.

You also don’t have to look hard for proof someone with Breslow’s background can thrive in the big chair.

Texas Rangers general manager Chris Young, also an Ivy League graduate and a recently retired MLB pitcher, was only 41 when he was hired in late 2020. Under his leadership the Rangers have aggressively surrounded their homegrown core with high-end outside talent, and now Texas is back in the ALCS for the first time since 2011.

One area where Young has excelled, and where former Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom often drew criticism, is the ability to keep his finger on the pulse of the clubhouse. The past couple summers Red Sox players often expressed frustration over the team’s relative inactivity at the trade deadline, which may have contributed to the club’s second half swoons.

Young, a former player, understood that waiting for the club to get healthy would send the wrong message and swung several big deals that helped keep the Rangers afloat. Breslow also understands those clubhouse dynamics, and having already won a World Series title here he might be better equipped than most to navigate life as Boston’s baseball boss.

If nothing else Breslow’s already done enough to warrant serious consideration, now it will be fascinating to see if the Red Sox ultimately hand him the ball.