Alex Bader
The Minnesota Wild overwhelmed the Tampa Bay Lightning with an impressive showing on Sunday with a score of 4-2. It was the Wild's 9th straight home win against the Lightning and they improved to 7-2 at home on the season and 14-6-1 overall.
Cam Talbot had 28 saves and is now 12-5.
The Minnesota Wild were coming off of a huge win on Friday over the Winnipeg Jets, where they thrashed the Jets, 7-1.
The Wild entered the game against the reigning champions, Tampa Bay Lightning, in first place in the Central Division by two points.
The Wild lost to the Lightning last weekend in Tampa Bay in a shootout and certainly wanted to repay the favor at home by getting the two points.
BADER'S TAKE
Ryan Hartman is good at hockey.
He certainly isn't the #1 center that fans thought Kaprizov needed. But, he is proving it hard for fans to say he doesn't deserve to be on the line with Kaprizov.
One would argue that it is Kaprizov making him look better and since Kirill draws so much attention, it often leaves Hartman open. I would say that is a valid argument but you cannot overlook what he is doing to start the season.
He leads the team in goals and has been solid in creating and burying chances.
He scores the big goals, and got another game-winning goal tonight.
Pitlick looked good in his debut on the first line with Kaprizov and Hartman. The Wild will need to get continuous help from their depth players, especially with Zuccarello and Spurgeon out of the lineup.
That is also what makes the last two games so impressive. They did it without Spurgeon and today without both Spurgeon and Zuccarello.
This team has the makings of being a cup final contender and are proving to be a hard team to beat, especially at home.
Game Recap:
The question of Mats Zuccarello playing was a game time decision. It was determined he was unable to play in the game, which put Victor Rask back into the lineup.
The Wild needed to have a strong first period and get the early lead just like they did on Friday against the Jets.
The Wild continued to press and looked great early on.
Nick Bjugstad grabbed a loose puck, blew past Joseph, and sniped the puck into the smallest of gaps over Vasilevskiy's shoulder. The Wild took the early lead,1-0.
Bjugstad's goal snapped Vasilevskiy's shutout streak at 141:29
The Lightning came right back and tied the game with a goal from Corey Perry.
Minnesota continued their pressure.
With three minutes left in the period, Victor Rask scored after Fiala swung and missed to give the Wild the lead, 2-1.
It was a strong period for both teams.
Minnesota came out in the second period and continued to play hard.
The Wild were rewarded with several power plays. However, they went 0 for 3 on the Bogosian penalties.
It was the Lightning who found the back of the net with a goal from Killorn, 2-2.
The Wild responded to the goal well and pushed back late in the second period. Dumba took a bad high sticking penalty.
The Wild went into the third period tied and had to start the period on the penalty kill.
It was an aggravating period for the Wild that saw them miss a slew of chances. They needed to be better in the third period.
The Wild killed the huge penalty and kept the game tied.
With 14 minutes to play, Foligno leveled Patrick Maroon in hopes to get his team energized.
The black horse team leader in goals, Ryan Hartman, scored his 12th goal of the season to give the Wild the lead with just under 11 minutes left in the game, 3-2. Kaprizov and Pitlick picked up the assists.
Hartman is on a 46.8 goal pace and he has nine goals in his last 14 games.
With 6:27 left in the game, Duhaime went to the box for tripping and put the Lightning on the power play with a chance to tie.
A big kill was needed from the Wild.
The Wild killed the penalty and only allowed one shot on the net.
The Lightning pulled the goalie.
Tampa Bay pressed and Talbot had to be sharp more than once. Talbot kept the Wild alive.
Foligno was able to find the empty net and seal the deal for the Wild.
Minnesota Wild beat the Lighting 4-2 and looked great doing it.
They have an easier test coming up in the Arizona Coyotes and it will be important for the Wild to not play down to the level of the Coyotes.
What's Next:
Minnesota Wild ( 14-6-1 29 pts.) vs. Arizona Coyotes ( 4-15-2 10 pts. )
Tuesday, Nov. 30, 2021. Puck Drop at 7 p. m.
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