The Minnesota Wild took on the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday afternoon, Dec. 20, in the first half of a home back-to-back. They had almost all of their injured players return, with the exception of Zach Bogosian, and it gave a big bump to their lineup. Filip Gustavsson was back in the net, and everyone played strongly.
They started out with the lead early in the opening period, the Oilers tied it up, but the Wild pushed forward and took the win. In this article, we’ll look at a few takeaways on how the Wild got the win, starting with one of their top forwards.
Wild’s Boldy Continues Success
Matt Boldy has been with the Wild for five seasons now, and while he showed a lot of promise over those years, it took him some time to truly get out of his shell. This season, he’s truly found his game and hasn’t stopped. He’s scoring goals, setting up plays, and overall showing the type of player everyone expected him to be, and that included against the Oilers.
His first goal that opened the scoring was a smooth breakaway where he blocked the puck in the defensive zone, was able to pick it up, got around the Oilers defense, and snuck it past the goaltender. That effort alone proved the type of player he is, but he continued just a few minutes later when the Wild had their power play.
His second goal was set up by the newcomer to the team, Quinn Hughes, as he quarterbacked the power play and got things moving. He made the correct passes at the correct time and saw Boldy was open, and he did the rest. Although the Oilers did climb back, Boldy’s two goals gave the Wild the momentum they needed to start off on the right foot.
Wild’s All-Russian Line
When you hear “all-Russian line” when it comes to the Wild, you’re probably thinking Kirill Kaprizov is on that line, but actually, he wasn’t. This line was made up of Vladimir Tarasenko, Danila Yurov, and Yakov Trenin. When the Wild were going through all their injury issues, they put this line together, and it’s safe to say they’ve exceeded everyone’s expectations.
The one who’s impressed the most on this line has to be Tarasenko; he’s already battled through an injury this season and a struggling start. However, in the past few games since being added to this line, he’s shone brightly and found his game again. He’s had four goals in the past four games, plus two assists for six points in those games, including a goal against the Oilers, plus an assist. Prior to this streak, he had 13 points in 25 games, which is still okay, but not the success he has now.
Yurov has really started to show his skills and game as well. He’s started to accumulate points and really impacts the play. Trenin is an interesting part of this line as he adds more of a physical side; however, with Yurov and Tarasenko, he’s been able to showcase a little more skill and step up his game as well, including against the Oilers.
Wild’s Gustavsson Helps Earn Win
Of course, the scoring is what got the Wild their win, but they couldn’t have done it without their goaltender. Filip Gustavsson was in the net against the Oilers, and although he did let in a couple of goals in the first period, he was solid the rest of the night. The first goal was a tipped shot he had no chance of stopping, and the second was a crazy play in front of the net on the Wild’s penalty kill that saw Connor McDavid knock in a loose puck.
It’s incredibly hard to keep the talents of McDavid off the board the entire game, but thankfully, Gustavsson kept his head even after the Oilers got two goals back-to-back. Two goals like that would be enough to deflate any team and set them back on their heels, but instead, the Wild answered back with a goal, and their goaltender stood tall.
Related: Wild Still a Tier Below Other West Contenders, Even After Adding Hughes
The Wild would not have the strong record they do if it weren’t for the goaltending tandem of Gustavsson and Jesper Wallstedt. They’ve found their scoring stride, but thankfully, their goaltending has continued to be strong, no matter what has gone on. They’ll need it to continue as well if they want to continue to win games.
The Wild won’t have long to relish this win as they’ll be right back at it again on Sunday, Dec. 21 at home when they finish out their home back-to-back against the number one team in the NHL the Colorado Avalanche who they’ve already beat once this season and will need to have that strong effort once again if they want to continue this winning streak.
