Matt Boldy put the Minnesota Wild in control early in the third period and finished off a hat trick as Toronto’s home skid kept rolling Thursday night.
Boldy’s third goal of the game came after William Nylander and Oliver Ekman-Larsson got their wires crossed off the rush, leaving a clean opening for the Wild winger in a 5-2 Minnesota win at Toronto. It was Boldy’s second hat trick of the season and the sixth of his career.
Minnesota also got goals from Michael McCarron and Danila Yurov, who scored into an empty net. Jesper Wallstedt stopped 26 shots, while Kirill Kaprizov collected three assists and Yurov added one more for a two-point night.
The loss was Toronto’s fifth straight at home in regulation and dropped the Maple Leafs to 8-11-2 overall. They’ve now lost the first game of a five-game stretch inside what has become a rough six-game homestand, and they’re just 1-7-0 over their last eight.
Minnesota, meanwhile, kept rolling. The Wild are 14-3-4 and have gone 8-0-2 over their last 10 since their last regulation loss, which came against the Calgary Flames on Oct. 22.
The turning point came late in the second period. Toronto defenceman Darren Raddysh took a penalty, and Boldy cashed in on the power play to tie the game 2-2.
There were also lineup notes on both sides. Toronto was without veteran defenceman Chris Tanev for the second time in three games because of load management, while Morgan Rielly remains sidelined with a lower-body injury. For Minnesota, Brock Faber could be back this weekend after missing time with a fractured skull suffered in pre-season play.
There was one more notable statistical note attached to the night: Quinn Hughes picked up an assist on Boldy’s second goal, giving the Minnesota defenceman a point streak of at least 10 games for the third time in his career. That matches Phil Housley for the second-most by an American blueliner in NHL history, behind Brian Leetch’s four.
Toronto will try to stop the slide Saturday against the Edmonton Oilers. Minnesota heads to Boston to face the Bruins the same day.
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Bill Guerin Faces A Wild Decision That Could Define This Season
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As the 2027 trade deadline gets closer, Bill Guerin may have to decide whether to ride this out for a playoff push or start bracing for what comes next if Hughes is not part of the long-term picture. Keeping a player like that without an extension carries obvious risk, and the Wild would have to weigh the value of a deep run against the possibility that a major roster shift could follow soon after. [Read more 🡒]