Minnesota Wild left winger Jason Zucker is currently the only NHL player from Nevada. Las Vegas to be exact, home of the NHL’s newest franchise, the Vegas Golden Knights.

Less than six months ago, it seemed like a match made in heaven .

It was something of a foregone conclusion that with the NHL Expansion Draft looming, the Wild would expose Zucker, the Golden Knights would select him, and the 25-year-old would become an instant hometown hero.

Not now.

While the Wild will still be forced to expose a number of players to the June 21 draft — they can protect seven forwards, three defenseman and one goaltender — Zucker doesn’t figure to be one of them. Tied for the team lead with 16 goals, he already has a career-high 36 points, and his plus-30 rating is tied for best in the NHL.

“It’s a very high level,” coach Bruce Boudreau said. “He’s playing great right now.”

Zucker also has been part of an effective second line with center Mikko Koivu and opposite right winger Mikael Granlund. Since becoming a line on Nov. 25 against the defending Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins, the trio has totaled 88 points (34 goals, 54 assists).

Zucker has 28 points (14 goals, 14 assists) in that span, while Koivu has 28 points (12 goals, 16 assists) and Granlund 32 points (8 goals, 24 assists).

“We have had some success,” Zucker said, downplaying the eye-popping stats. “We want to continue to get better.”

Zucker, meanwhile, is focused on staying consistent. Though he has flashed his massive potential in the past — particularly when he scored 21 goals in 51 games two seasons ago — he has never been able to build on it, a large reason was seen as an expansion draft candidate.

He was well aware that this was a prove-it season for him.

“This was the time that it needed to happen,” he said.

It wasn’t immediate success. Boudreau, clearly frustrated by Zucker’s effort, started him on the fourth line.

“When he skates at full speed, he’s a fast skater,” Boudreau said recently. “When he skates at half speed, only half the time, that’s not good enough.”

It took a month-and-a-half for Zucker to earn a promotion, and he is yet to look back. He scored the Wild’s lone goal in Minnesota’s 5-1 loss at Calgary on Wednesday, a rare misstep for the Western Conference-leading Wild.

“You can see his determination to get better,” Koivu said. “He prepares so hard for each and every game. He has that experience now. It isn’t an easy thing to do to perform each and every night. His consistency has been the key so far this season. There are still a lot of games to go.”

According to NHL rules, the Wild must protect players with no-movement clauses in their contracts at the time of the NHL Expansion Draft. That includes Koivu, left winger Zach Parise, right winger Jason Pominville and defenseman Ryan Suter.

Pominville could waive his no-movement clause — the Golden Knights more than likely wouldn’t take the 34-year-old — to open up another forward spot.

The Wild likely want to keep Granlund, right winger Charlie Coyle, center Eric Staal and left winger Nino Niederreiter from its pool of forwards. That would leave players like center Erik Haula and left winger Chris Stewart, among others, up for exposure.

In addition to Suter on the back end, the Wild would almost certainly protect Jared Spurgeon. They then would be forced to pick between Jonas Brodin, Matt Dumba and Marco Scandella to fill the last blue line spot.

Devan Dubnyk will be the goaltender protected, made possible by the team’s decision to sign goalie Alex Stalock to a two-year, $1.3 million contract extension on Thursday afternoon.

No matter what the Wild choose, it’s becoming clear that they will have to stomach losing a talented up-and-coming player. That means Zucker must continue to prove himself.

“I’m not satisfied,” he said. “It’s about staying consistent and playing my game every single night.”