In a late-night match, Kirill Kaprizov scored twice, and a fresh line set the tone for a three-goal first quarter. Boldy and Kaprizov Lead Wild to Victory
LAS VEGAS — A hit taken, much like a hit given, can get lost in the shuffle.
But seconds apart and on either side of a forceful cut to the middle, they weren’t just memorable for the Wild: They completely changed their performance.
“We just got to our game,” Marcus Foligno said.
Game 3 is Thursday at Xcel Energy Center.
“The start was the start, but we felt good going into it,” Foligno said after the Wild finally defeated Vegas in five tries this season. “It was nice to see us take over.”
Early on, the Wild appeared to be in trouble.
In just the first minute, Wild goalie Filip Gustavsson made two saves, the second off a deflection, to start the Golden Knights’ 5-0 run in shots. They struggled to get out of their own zone, had not yet tested Vegas goalie Adin Hill, and were getting closer to scoring.
Another turnover and ensuing icing by the Wild didn’t help them halt Vegas’ pressure, but eventually Foligno, Hartman and Nyquist getting on the ice did.
“Our line we can do that at times if things maybe aren’t going the right way, try to swing that momentum into our direction,” Hartman said.
For starters, Hartman made the first assertive drive by the Wild, veering to the inside like he’s been doing throughout the series to finally challenge Hill.
Next, Foligno crushed Golden Knights defenseman Zach Whitecloud at the Vegas bench en route to 12 hits, a postseason franchise record. “It’s a line that we need going, for sure.”
Then Nyquist absorbed a hit from 6-foot-6, 245-pound defender Nicolas Hague while keeping the puck moving forward to Hartman.
“Those guys came through in a big way,” coach John Hynes said, “and I thought played the style of game that would give them a chance to be good.”
After that, the Wild were good, too.
Yakov Trenin sent a behind-the-back pass to Joel Eriksson Ek, his one-timer forcing Hill into his best stop of the series before Hill gloved down a Matt Boldy try.
But before long, the Wild connected.
Kaprizov sent a slick saucer pass between the Vegas defense to Boldy, who buried the breakaway at 9 minutes, 56 seconds of the tale of two teams first period.
Boldy is only the second player in team history to score three consecutive playoff goals for the Wild, joining Marian Gaborik (2003).
“To make that pass right on my tape,” Boldy said, “yeah, it was unbelievable.”
The Foligno, Hartman, and Nyquist line continued to be a handful, resulting in a second Wild tally — this one by a net-crashing Foligno at 11:35 after Hartman threw his rebound toward the middle.
Hartman replacing Marco Rossi as the center on this line was indicative of adding a scorer alongside the size of Trenin and Justin Brazeau, but also Hartman’s strong effort in the Wild’s 4-2 loss in Game 1.
“I just try to play the game hard, try to be undeniable and go out there and earn time,” said Hartman, who has seven points in his last seven playoff games. “Obviously, we need everyone at all times, so I think there’s going to be points where guys are jumping up and guys are going down. That’s how you win this time of year.”
- Scoring summary: Wild 5, Vegas 2
But that trio wasn’t the only one to have an impact.
With 2:45 left in the first period, Mats Zuccarello spun off a Brayden McNabb hit along the boards and accepted a Marcus Johansson pass while getting loose in Vegas territory for an uncontested writer by Hill.
Zuccarello remarked, “It’s good that our top guys are going, and we got contributions from deeper in the squad.”
The Golden Knights did get better, but the Wild continued where they left off in the second, with Kaprizov’s attempt off a 2-on-1 dribbling behind Hill.
They finally drove a puck behind Gustavsson at 12:04 when Noah Hanifin walked into the rebound of a Zeev Buium poke check and 2:26 into the third, Tomas Hertl had a redirect in front.
After Kaprizov’s goal, the Wild had only five shots the rest of the way, but the less-is-more, bend-don’t-break tactic suited them: They didn’t take advantage of the game’s only power play later in the third period, but Kaprizov drained a 170-foot empty-netter with 2:26 to go to deny Vegas’ rally.
The Wild blocked 30 shots, more than twice as many as the Golden Knights did, and Gustavsson made 30 saves compared to Hill’s 12.
Hynes stated, “I thought we did a fairly good job of that. The big part is poise under pressure, playing smart, understanding how to manage those certain things.”
With 12 playoff goals, Kaprizov is tied with Gaborik for second place in Wild history, only surpassed by Zach Parise’s 16; his five points are tied for first place in NHL postseason scoring, while Boldy’s three goals tie him for first place.
The Wild’s talents were on display once more, but Hartman and Nyquist set the tone after Foligno.
“We played a little iffy in the first game,” Foligno remarked. “If we are able to get our line moving, it will
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