The Minnesota Wild headed south to face the Dallas Stars in their first game following the holiday break on Friday evening, Dec. 27. They had Filip Gustavsson in net, who was back for his second game after his return from injury, but they were without Kirill Kaprizov.
It was announced Friday morning that Kaprizov would not be playing as he’s day-to-day with a lower-body injury, and they were still without Joel Eriksson Ek, Jakub Lauko, and Jake Middleton. Things didn’t look good for the Wild as they got down in the first two periods but found a way to come back in the third and stole the win in overtime, 3-2. In this article, we’ll look at how they did it, starting with how they got production from deeper in the lineup.
Wild Getting Production
The Wild knew they would need others to step up when Eriksson Ek and Middleton went down with injuries, but it became even more important when it was announced that Kaprizov was out. It was expected these players would be Matt Boldy and Mats Zuccarello, but the scoring they received was from even deeper in the lineup.
Two of them were by defensemen, including the game-winner. Jonas Brodin started with Zuccarello getting the assist, and then Marcus Foligno added his sixth of the season to tie the game. The defenseman who scored the game-winner was Brock Faber, who registered his fifth of the season.
It may have come late in the game, but the Wild got the scoring they needed and took the Stars by surprise. This win was exactly what the team needed to truly get back on track and prove they can win games regardless of who’s injured.
Wild Find Third Period Luck
The Wild have been scoring in all three periods, but the third period has been their best by far, and it showed against the Stars. They were quiet and had issues getting possession throughout the first and second periods, but they capitalized in the third. The Stars had control in the Wild’s defensive zone, but Zuccarello cut off a pass and went full speed the other way, setting up Brodin for the goal.
That goal gave the team the jumpstart they needed to start playing with more energy and motivation, which led to another goal less than a minute later. The Wild held on to the tie throughout the last half of the period and forced overtime. It seemed like they couldn’t be stopped as they scored 35 seconds into the overtime and took the win.
They’ve scored 42 goals in the third period compared to 33 in the second and 27 in the first. To start the season, the Wild’s best period was the first, but as the season has gone on, it’s switched to the third just in time for them to mount comebacks.
Wild’s Penalty Kill Steps Up
When the Wild took their first penalty of the game, they were already down one goal, and it looked like they would go down two as their penalty kill has struggled greatly this season. Plus, it has always had trouble against the Stars. However, that all changed as they killed off not one but all three penalties they took.
With each penalty they took, it seemed like their luck would run out, the Stars would score, and it would follow the same storyline it has for a few seasons now, but they managed to shut it down. They also managed to do this without several key penalty killers: Eriksson Ek, Lauko, and Middleton. This will hopefully be the tipping point the Wild needed to get their penalty kill back on track and continue to kill off penalties.
Related: 3 Takeaways From the Wild’s Win Over the Blackhawks
On the flip side, their power play still is struggling to score. They had just one power play against the Stars, and the Stars controlled it. They didn’t register a single shot or have any good chances. While the Wild’s power play has struggled, they’ve at least found some opportunities, but not against the Stars, something they’ll have to fix going forward.
Wild Face Senators
The Wild will head home to face the Ottawa Senators on Sunday evening, Dec. 29, just a few days before the New Year. It’ll be their first meeting with the Senators and the second game of a back-to-back for the Senators, so the Wild will have the slight upper hand. Hopefully, this win will give them the confidence they need to play their style of hockey and continue to win games.
