Winless no more.
Kirill Kaprizov put the Minnesota Wild in the win column for the first time this season when he scored the game-winning goal in overtime for a 4-3 victory Thursday night in St. Paul.
Kaprizov netted the winning goal when the Wild had a 4-on-3 advantage after Kaprizov drew a penalty. Minnesota maintained possession of the puck and the delayed penalty gave Kaprizov enough time to rip a shot into the back of the net to stop a three-game slide to start the season. Kaprizov finished with a goal and two assists.
game winner. who else?
9️⃣7️⃣#mnwild pic.twitter.com/aGsxZ0rksQ— Minnesota Wild (@mnwild) October 21, 2022
Regardless of the outcome, the most important result may have been goalie Marc-Andre Fleury returning to form. Fleury allowed 11 goals in four periods to start the season but was on point against the Canucks with 23 saves. Of the three goals he allowed, two were forgivable and he made a number of highlight-reel saves.
🌸⛔#mnwild pic.twitter.com/1z0uZiSv6g
— Minnesota Wild (@mnwild) October 21, 2022
The Wild dominated the first six minutes of the game, keeping the puck for the majority of that stretch in the offensive zone. The pressure led to a goal from Mats Zuccarello 4:37 into the opening period, only to have the Canucks come back with a pair of goals – Bo Harvat at 7:58 and Nils Harman at 16:47 – to take a 2-1 lead.
Sam Steel’s second goal in a Wild uniform tied the score 2-2 at the 19:00 mark.
Sam Steel buries Kaprizov's terrific centering feed to tie it up at 2 for the Wild!#mnwild pic.twitter.com/HKFAcsemAp
— Hockey Daily 365 l NHL Highlights & News (@HockeyDaily365) October 21, 2022
Minnesota, without Jordan Greenway to start the second period because of an upper-body injury sustained in his first game back from offseason shoulder surgery, fell behind 3-2 when Vancouver’s Dakota Joshua flipped in a goal after a pair of brilliant saves by Marc-Andre Fleury.
Dakota Joshua JUST snuck it past Marc-Andre Fleury 😅 pic.twitter.com/MO06XWYgUP
— ESPN+ (@ESPNPlus) October 21, 2022
Zuccarello is already up to four goals on the season while Kaprizov and Calen Addison have racked four and five assists, respectively.
