Max Shabanov kept Minnesota’s special teams surge rolling, and the Wild kept piling up the early damage.
Shabanov scored on the power play during a three-goal first period, Matt Boldy and Danila Yurov added the other opening-period goals, and the Wild held off the Vegas Golden Knights 4-2 on Monday night in St. Paul, riding another sharp night on both special teams.
Minnesota’s penalty kill stayed perfect again, blanking all five Vegas chances. The Wild are now 21 for 22 this season in that department, the top mark in the NHL. Their power play has been just as dangerous, sitting at 7 for 17 and producing at key moments yet again.
That early surge was enough to put Vegas in a hole it couldn’t fully climb out of. The Wild outshot the Golden Knights 23-11 over the first two periods, including 6-1 while shorthanded, and then tightened up when the game got close in the third.
Rasmus Andersson got Vegas on the board in the second period, and William Karlsson cut it to one midway through the third. But Minnesota shut things down after that, and Joel Eriksson Ek finished it off with an empty-net goal with 1:22 left.
Jesper Wallstedt handled 21 shots for the Wild, continuing a workload that has seen him start all six games in goal for Minnesota. Carter Hart made 24 saves for Vegas, which fell behind 3-0 in the first period for the second time in three games.
Shabanov’s goal also extended a franchise mark, giving Minnesota a power-play score in six straight games to open the season. The shot bounced off Hart’s blocker, with Eriksson Ek working in front of the crease to create traffic.
The Wild did all of this without first-pair defenseman Brock Faber, who remains out with a skull fracture. They also lost Nico Sturm in the first period after he was struck on the side of the head by Jared Spurgeon’s slap shot. Minnesota is also without Marcus and Nick Foligno, both on injured reserve.
There was another notable first for Wild rookie Rieger Lorenz, who made his NHL debut in the win at Florida on Saturday. Lorenz picked up his first assist on Yurov’s goal and later fought Jeremy Lauzon in the third period.
In Other News...
Wild Blue Line Suddenly Has A Chance To Change This Start
The early weeks have given Minnesota something it has not always had on the blue line: steady production from the defense as well as cleaner play in its own end. Quinn Hughes and Jared Spurgeon have helped stabilize the group while also chipping in offensively, giving the Wild a more balanced look than the one that so often leaves the forwards carrying the load.
Spurgeons start has been notable enough on its own, but the pairing of his production with Hughes has pushed it into unusual territory for the franchise and, apparently, for the league record book as well. For a team trying to build a more reliable foundation this season, the fact that both defensemen have kept contributing every night is a welcome development, even if the full significance of the run is still unfolding. [Read more 🡒]
Wild Forward Depth Already Looks Tested After Hynes Foligno Update
The Wilds forward group is taking an early hit, and it comes with two familiar names in the middle of it. Head coach John Hynes said Marcus Foligno is dealing with an injury that has him listed day-to-day, while Nick Foligno is also out and has already forced the team to adjust its look up front. For a club that leans on depth and structure, losing two veterans in the same area of the lineup is not exactly a gentle way to open the season.
Marcus Foligno is still waiting on a medical evaluation that should provide more clarity, which leaves Minnesota in a holding pattern on one of its more physical and dependable forwards. Nick Foligno, meanwhile, is expected to need more time before returning, even if the team is not treating it as a long-term situation. For now, the Wild are trying to manage those absences without letting the ripple effect spread too far through the rest of the forward rotation. [Read more 🡒]
Kaprizov Just Led The Kind Of Wild Win Fans Needed
Kirill Kaprizov gave the Wild exactly the sort of night they needed in South Florida, piling up a hat trick and an assist in Minnesotas 4-1 win over the Panthers at Amerant Bank Arena. Matt Boldy chipped in a goal and an assist, and Jesper Wallstedt backed it up with 29 saves as the Wild handled a Florida team that never found much traction offensively outside of Matthew Tkachuks lone goal.
The result stood out even more because Minnesotas special teams held up well while Floridas power play sputtered throughout the night. For a Wild club looking for a confidence-building road win, the combination of Kaprizov driving the attack and Wallstedt settling things down in net was the kind of formula that can travel, even if one key scoring sequence from the star winger will be the part everyone wants to go back and see. [Read more 🡒]