The Wild (17-8-5) and Blackhawks (20-6-4) battled in an outstanding Western Conference showdown at the Xcel Energy Center Thursday night, and it was the Wild rallying with a pair of goals by defensemen to come-from-behind for a 4-3 win.
Jonas Brodin’s slap shot tied the game 3-3 on a power play with less than six minutes left in the contest. Marco Scandella then fired in a slap shot of his own – his first goal of the season – for the game-winner with only 1:48 left in the third.
A wrist shot from Matt Cooke put the Wild on the board with the first goal of the game at the 4:23 mark of the first period. Torrey Mitchell and former Gophers star Erik Haula, who centered the fourth line, assisted on the play.
The Wild went up by a pair of goals when Zach Parise fired a wrist shot by goalie Corey Crawford midway through the second period. It was Parise’s 12th goal of the season.
Late in the second period the Blackhawks struck when Jeremy Morin backhanded a rebound in front of the goal past Josh Harding to cut the Minnesota lead to 2-1.
The defending champs then took control of the game by tying the game at 2-all on a snap shot by Brendan Saad just 35 seconds into the third period. Chicago took the lead on a gorgeous snap shot by Marian Hossa six minutes later. Hossa’s goal sailed over the top of Harding’s right shoulder and into the back of the net.
Niklas Backstrom earned the win after replacing Harding after Hossa’s goal.
Minnesota outshot Chicago 23-19.
