The Minnesota Wild reclaimed control of the Western Conference quarterfinals with a 3-0 Game 3 victory over St. Louis at the Xcel Energy Center.
The win gives the Wild a 2-1 edge in the best-of-seven series. It was Minnesota’s sixth victory at the Xcel Energy Center in their last seven postseason games, while it was St. Louis’ ninth straight postseason road loss.
It was also the first time since Dec. 2008 that the Wild shutout the Blues.
Devan Dubnyk 17 saves for 3rd playoff shutout in #mnwild history. 1st-ever penalty-free playoff game for Wild AT home. Up 2-1 in series
— Michael Russo (@RussoHockey) April 21, 2015
The line of Zach Parise, Jason Pominville and Mikael Granlund did a lot of damage for the Wild. All three finished with multiple points in the victory.
After a scoreless first, Minnesota ramped up the pressure in the second period. After some great opportunities were turned away by St. Louis goaltender Jake Allen, Pominville finally put the Wild on the scoreboard after he finished off a break started by Granlund.
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After that icebreaker, Parise scored on the line’s very next shift, sneaking a shot past Allen to push the Wild lead to 2-0. Both Pominville and Granlund assisted.
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The score remained 2-0 until the third, when the Blues pulled Allen with nearly 3-minutes to go. The move backfired as the Wild created a turnover and Nino Niederreiter hit the empty net to put the game out of reach at 3-0.
Unfortunately after the Wild took the big lead, things got a little ugly in the final moments.
https://twitter.com/myregularface/status/590345208644165633
The Wild host St. Louis for Game 4 on Wednesday night.
Scoring Summary
2nd period: 14:08 MIN – Jason Pominville (2) Backhand shot – Assist: Zach Parise (3), Mikael Granlund (1) 1-0 MIN
2nd period: 16:13 MIN – Parise (1) Snap shot – Assist: Pominville (2), Granlund (2) 2-0 MIN
3rd period: 17:58 MIN EN – Nino Niederreiter (1) Wrist shot – Assist: None 3-0 MIN
