Coming into Tuesday, December 7th, the Wild were coming off their 6th straight win after an exciting win over the Toronto Maple Leafs which was a big test against a good team. They were the 5th team in league standings and the top team in the Central Division.
The Wild looked to increase their winning streak to seven and get closer to the franchise record, twelve wins. They also looked to continue their rise in the standings as they have been one of the hottest teams after a 10-3-1 record in November and a 17-6-1 record going into the game.
The Wild were also hopeful to get their captain, Jared Spurgeon, back on the ice as he was traveling with the team again. After five games at home, the Wild were ready to kick off their four game road trip in Edmonton.
Minnesota Wild @ Edmonton Oilers – December 7th
Starting Goalies: Cam Talbot (Wild) and Mikko Koskinen
In their first game of the road trip, their first opponent was another big test as they were set to face the Edmonton Oilers in the first of three meetings between these two teams. The Oilers, who were only 3 points behind the Wild, also had the two leading point scorers in the league with Leon Draisaitl (43 points at the time) and Connor McDavid (42 points at the time).
The Wild had their own star rising in the scoring leader ranks, Kirill Kaprizov, who was coming in on a five game point streak and 29 points on the season. With Cam Talbot returning to a former team, he was also looking for a solid revenge win.
The first period started early for the Wild as Joel Eriksson Ek (10) scored on the power play from Mats Zuccarello (12) and Jonas Brodin (10) just 1:11 into the game. The Oilers showed their speed and offense but the Wild continued to shut them down. They increased their lead to 2-0 at the 12:46 mark of the 1st period with Marcus Foligno (11) with a solid one-timer goal from Matt Dumba (10) and Eriksson Ek (7). The 1st period would end with a 2-0 Wild lead.
The second period began with a push from the Oilers and their top line, who were creating tons of scoring chances. The Wild had the upper hand with Cam Talbot continuing to shut the door on the puck. At the 13:26 mark of the period, the Oilers finally got one past Talbot with a goal from Jesse Puljujarvi (8) assisted by Connor McDavid (27) and Zach Hyman (8) to decrease the Wild’s lead to 2-1. That would end up being the lone goal of the period as the rest of the 2nd was met with a penalty to each team and back-and-forth play. The 2nd ended with a 2-1 Wild lead.
The third period kicked off right where the second period left off with back-and-forth play. The Oilers had tons of energy as usual but Talbot and the Wild continued to shut down any scoring chances. The Wild capitalized on their own scoring chances with a goal from Victor Rask (4) from Brodin (11) and Zuccarello (13) to give the Wild a 3-1 lead with 14:27 left in the third period. The Oilers did not give up as the game flow remained heavy on their end of the offense but were eventually deflated. With 5:03 left in the game, the Wild increased their lead to 4-1 after Dmitry Kulikov netted his third of the season from Kirill Kaprizov (21) and Jordie Benn (2). The game would end with a 4-1 win for the Wild over the Oilers.
Although outshot 39-26, the Wild were able to shut down one of the best scoring teams in the league led by Draistail and McDavid. Talbot stood out amongst all Wild players as he made 38 saves on 39 shots which was rewarded with him being named 1st Star of the game. Brodin, Zuccarello, and Eriksson Ek would end the game with 2-point nights and with Kaprizov’s assist on the final goal, he increased his point streak to six games. The Wild would also continue their winning streak which now sat at seven straight games. Streak Count: 7 Wins
Minnesota Wild @ San Jose Sharks – December 9th
Starting Goalies: Cam Talbot (Wild) and Adin Hill (Sharks)
Coming off their 7th straight win in Edmonton, the Wild were headed to San Jose to play the Sharks. This would be the second meeting between these two teams with San Jose leading the season series 1-0 after they beat the Wild in Minnesota 4-1. The Wild were not only seeking revenge for their first meeting but they were also looking to add their 8th straight win.
The first period kicked off a bit slow with only 3 shots on goals combined in the first five minutes of the game. On only their 4th shot of the game, the Wild took the 1-0 lead with Fiala’s 4th of the year and his 1st in seven games. The rest of the period remained slow with shots 10-9 Wild. The 1st period ended with a 1-0 Wild lead.
The second period started off with a bit more energy than the 1st period as both teams created some solid scoring chances. The Wild capitalized again as Joel Eriksson Ek (11) tips in a power play goal from Mats Zuccarello (14) and Kirill Kaprizov (22) to give the Wild a 2-0 lead. Kaprizov now continued his point streak to seven games. Making his NHL debut with the Wild, Mason Shaw even tried getting in on the action as he almost scored on Adin Hill as he hit the post on a beautiful shot. With 4:40 left in the period, the Wild increased their lead to 3-0 after Jordan Greenway (3) sniped one past Hill on the power play from Fiala (13) and Alex Gologoski (15).. The period would end with a 3-0 lead from the Wild.
Not ready to call it done yet, the Sharks kicked off the third period with a goal from Jonathan Dahlen (8) only 3:29 into the period. The Wild began to slow down a bit while the Sharks were still not giving up. They eventually decreased the Wild’s lead to 3-2 with a goal from Tomas Hertl (13). With the momentum on the Sharks side, the Wild needed to get back to shutting things down in their defensive end. Minnesota fans would be sweating this one out until a 1:48 left in the 3rd period when Jordan Greenway (4) gets his 2nd of the game on the empty net to give the Wild a 4-2 lead. Only :32 seconds later, Kaprizov (10) gets another empty netter for the Wild to really put the game away with a 5-2 lead. The game would end with a 5-2 Wild victory and their 8th straight win.
In this game, the Wild had four players with 2-point nights: Eriksson Ek (1-1-2), Greenway (2-0-2), Fiala (1-1-2), and Kaprizov (1-1-2). Cam Talbot had himself another 30+ save night with 33 saves on 35 shots. They are now headed to Los Angeles to play the Kings on Saturday, December 11th to get their 9th straight win. Streak Count: 8 Wins
Coming for Nine
As of today, December 10th, the Minnesota Wild currently sit #1 in the league standings with 39 points. They have a one point lead on each of the remaining top 5 teams who all have 38 points (Florida, Washington, Tampa Bay, Toronto). They are also tied for first in goal differential with Washington and Calgary who all have +27 goals.
Wild players are also standing out amongst scoring leaders with Kirill Kaprizov tied for 5th in points along with Steven Stamkos who both have 32 points. They trail only Draisaitl (45), McDavid (45), Ovechkin (41), and Kadri (34). Kaprizov is also tied for 3rd in assists with 22 on the season. He is averaging 1.23 points a game which is on pace for a 100-point season, the first in Wild history. As mentioned previously, along with the Wild’s winning streak, he also has a nice point streak of his own which now sits at seven games.
Ryan Hartman also stands out amongst Wild players as he sits at #11 just outside the top 10 in goals with 13 on the season and #1 on the team. He is only 6 goals away from his career high 19 on the season which he did with his time in Chicago back in the 2016-17 season. Cam Talbot is now also the standalone leader in goalie wins with 15 on the season which is now only 4 shy of his 2020-21 season finish.
The Wild’s 8th straight win is now the third longest streak in team history. They had a nine game winning streak back in the 2006-07 season and a twelve game winning streak back in the 2016-17 season. Can the Wild tie their second longest streak against the Kings? As always, stay tuned.
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