The Minnesota Wild faced the Toronto Maple Leafs and Montréal Canadiens in a back-to-back this week on Wednesday, Jan. 29, and Thursday, Jan. 30. They were coming off an okay road win against the Chicago Blackhawks and then on Tuesday morning before heading to Toronto it was announced that Kirill Kaprizov would be out at least four weeks as he recovers from lower body surgery.
Their first game against the Maple Leafs was kind of a make-it-or-break point to see if the Wild could turn their latest struggle around and start winning or keep struggling. They stepped up and got the win, then headed to Montréal and did the same thing. In this article, we’ll look at how they won these two games, starting with their goaltending.
Gustavsson & Fleury Lead Their Team
The goaltenders were key to each of these wins, and while Filip Gustavsson has been a little shaky these last few weeks, he was outstanding against the Maple Leafs. The big guns of Auston Matthews, William Nylander, Mitch Marner, etc, peppered him with shots, and although Gustavsson did allow one, he stopped the rest. He contributed to his team’s confidence level and it enabled them to play the best they have lately and come out with the win.
It was all about Marc-André Fleury in Montréal the night after their big win over the Maple Leafs, and he played just as amazing. It was likely his final night in Montréal, which is just an hour from his hometown of Sorel-Tracy, Quebec. He was applauded multiple times throughout the night, including a 5-minute standing ovation in the third period as the Canadiens fans thanked Fleury, and then after the game, the Canadiens players stuck around to shake Fleury’s hand.
He stepped up and stopped all 19 shots for his 76th career shutout, and he made NHL history as the first goaltender to get a shutout as a teenager and at 40 years or older, according to the NHL stats page. Fleury keeps rewriting history, and it likely won’t be the last record he writes before his career comes to an end.
Wild Get Scoring From Depth
One of the keys to the Wild getting these back-to-back wins was where their scoring came from. They obviously had some contributions from the top line, but their third and fourth lines also got involved. Marat Khusnutdinov, Jared Spurgeon, Marcus Foligno, Liam Öhgren, Devin Shore, and Frédérick Gaudreau all scored goals. The Khusnutdinov, Spurgeon, and Foligno goals came against the Maple Leafs and Öhgren, Shore, and Gaudreau scored against the Canadiens.
This type of scoring is what the Wild need to get through this time without Kaprizov. The top line will do what it can, but having the goals come from throughout the lineup was a big help. It boosted the confidence level of the team with each goal scored, and the team continued to play stronger. They still have a couple of games left on this road trip, and it’ll be interesting to see if they can continue with this.
Wild Play as Unit
The Wild struggled because they got away from their gameplay and couldn’t find a way to work as a unit. However, on this road trip, they found that style and looked like the team from the beginning of the season. They had their business-like game back and kept pushing ahead despite having the lead. Consistency has been an issue on and off all season, but these past two games, they showed they can play a consistent 60-minute game.
Related: Wild Have the Ability to Navigate Another Kaprizov Injury
This is the biggest key to the Wild’s success, and they have to use these two games as examples of what they need to play from now on. If they want to keep winning games, they must consistently play as a team. They did the little things right, and they got their game back quickly. Hopefully, the Wild can keep this going and continue to get the wins.
Wild Face Senators
The Wild will remain in Canada to face the Ottawa Senators on Saturday evening, Feb. 1. Their first meeting went in favor of the Senators in St. Paul, and the Wild will be looking to avenge that loss at home and extend their win streak to four. They’ll need to keep playing like they did against the Canadiens and Maple Leafs, if they do they should be able to pull out a win over the Senators.
