The Minnesota Wild went on the road for the first time in a couple of weeks after spending the past seven games at home. They went on the road to play in a back-to-back and their first opponent was the Columbus Blue Jackets; it was also the first time these two teams have met this season. The Wild were finally able to crack their recent first-period scoring drought not once but twice.
The Wild did keep their pattern of scoring early with a goal three minutes into the first to take a 1-0 lead and held onto it for another five minutes before they scored again for a 2-0 lead. Earlier in the season they struggled in the second period, but lately they’ve found a way to overcome that and they held strong against the Blue Jackets. They kept the lead throughout the second period and all the way to the end of the third to secure their fourth straight win and first on the road this month.
Wild’s Duhaime & Kaprizov at it Again
Brandon Duhaime has been a force to be reckoned with for the Wild in the last week, and while he isn’t known for scoring many goals, he’s found a way recently. He scored the first goal in their win over the Nashville Predators on Feb. 19 and he did the same in their win over the Blue Jackets. It was his sixth goal of the season and tied his career high from last season.
It seems the Wild found a great line combination with Duhaime playing wing alongside Frédérick Gaudreau and Jordan Greenway. All three players have taken a step up in their game, and while they aren’t producing a lot of points, they did create many opportunities. The same can be said about Kirill Kaprizov and his relatively recent line adjustment with the addition of center Ryan Hartman.
Related: Wild’s Scorers Step Up While Certain Players Continue to Struggle
Kaprizov scored the second goal of the game for his 34th of the season and his 68th overall point. He had a couple of big chances that were stopped, but he finally found a way past Blue Jackets goaltender Joonas Korpisalo to give his team the two-goal lead. He has four points in the last three games and the Wild really need both him and Duhaime to keep up their offensive success as they head into their second game of the back-to-back.
Wild’s Fleury Redeeming Himself
Following a rough game against the Colorado Avalanche back on Feb. 15 where Marc-André Fleury let in two goals on the five-hole and one right over his shoulder, he was back. However, not before he sat the next three games and was finally able to redeem himself in the net against the Blue Jackets. At first, things seemed a little rough with some big chances for the opposition but he found a way to step up and keep his team in it.
This was Fleury’s 73rd shutout of his career but just his second of the season and he faced 30 shots to earn it. The Wild are on a back-to-back, so that means Fleury’s goaltending partner Filip Gustavsson will be playing the second game this evening, but Fleury may be back in action on Sunday, Feb. 26 when they’ll face the Blue Jackets once again.
Fleury’s 73 shutouts have now come vs. 29 NHL teams. He is 13-7-2 all-time vs. CBJ, but that was blanking No. 1
— Michael Russo (@RussoHockey) February 24, 2023
The Wild had been rotating Fleury and Gustavsson until Fleury’s rough spot against the Avalanche and since then it looked like Gustavsson may be the starter. This win may be enough to put the rotation back in place, but for now it’s just one game at a time to see which goaltender gets the call.
Wild’s Lineup Changes
The Wild have had more than their fair share of injuries this season with several of them lasting a month or longer but they finally appeared to be turning a corner recently with a fully healthy roster. However, it didn’t last long as Marcus Foligno blocked a shot with his knee and missed several games, but made his return against the Blue Jackets, meaning there was no more room for prospect Adam Beckman.
That wasn’t the only change as their defense took a hit with two players out. Jonas Brodin who had recently returned from a two-game absence was put on injured reserve thanks to the same injury that didn’t heal properly. The other defenseman who missed out on the Blue Jackets game was Jon Merrill due to an illness and did not join them on the road trip, which means he’ll miss at least one more game.
Evason said Brodin’s injury keeps getting aggravated and the medical staff has recommended he needs some time to get it right. Evason doesn’t know how long that’ll be. Obviously a huge loss
— Michael Russo (@RussoHockey) February 23, 2023
In their absence, the Wild had Calen Addison back in action and they also had Dakota Mermis who made his season debut. Both players had a strong defensive effort and Addison was able to get back on the power play again after missing the past four games due to being a healthy scratch. Hopefully, the Wild will get their players back sooner rather than later, but if they don’t it looks like they’re in good hands for the time being.
Wild’s Next Opponent
The Wild had an interesting rivalry in their game against the Blue Jackets, between the Wild’s assistant equipment manager Cliff Halstead and the Blue Jackets’ assistant equipment manager Dustin Halstead. The two are brothers and were battling to see who does their job better. While Cliff won the first round, Dustin will be able to go for the tie on Sunday when the Wild face the Blue Jackets once again, but before that they’ll have to face the Toronto Maple Leafs.
The Wild will have to be prepared for the scoring powers of Mitchell Marner, William Nylander, John Tavares, and Auston Matthews. Hopefully, the Wild’s offense can keep scoring when they take on Ilya Samsonov or Joseph Woll, but most likely it’ll be their starter, Samsonov. The Wild have found a way to win games and the Maple Leafs will be a hard team to beat without strong offense and defense. The Wild will have to keep playing the way they have been and stay out of the penalty box to beat the Maple Leafs.