A three-goal first period came after a new line set the tone, and Kirill Kaprizov scored twice in a late night contest.
The Minnesota Star Tribune
Ryan Hartman of the Wild got a shot on Golden Knights goalie Adin Hill during Tuesday’s game in Vegas. (David Becker/The Associated Press)
Comment
Share
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.
Those three plays by the new-look line of Foligno, Ryan Hartman and Gustav Nyquist turned the Wild’s slow start into a feel-good finish — their tenacious checking, shrewd decision-making and quality-over-quantity shooting leading the team to a 5-2 takedown of the Golden Knights Tuesday night at T-Mobile Arena and 1-1 split in the best-of-seven series.
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.”
The Wild looked in trouble early.
They had difficulty getting out of their own zone, had yet to test Vegas goalie Adin Hill, and the Golden Knights were getting closer and closer to capitalizing; their 5-0 run in shots began with a pair of saves for Wild goaltender Filip Gustavsson in only the first minute — the second off a deflection.
“First couple minutes was not great,” said Kirill Kaprizov, who would score twice in the game.
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.
“I could have gotten us up a little earlier,” he said.
Next, Foligno crushed Golden Knights defenseman Zach Whitecloud at the Vegas bench en route to 12 hits, a postseason franchise record. His 23 hits through Games 1-2 are tied for the second most in NHL history over a two-game span in the playoffs.
“If I can get in there and be physical, open some things up, Hartzy’s got a lot of skill around the net,” Foligno said. “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, and that resulted in a second Wild tally — this one a put back 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 in Rossi alongside the size of Trenin and Justin Brazeau but also Hartman’s strong effort in the Wild’s 4-2 loss in Game 1.
Not only did he assist on Boldy’s first goal, but he drew the Wild’s lone power play and kept his cool while getting hit by the Golden Knights — including a cross-check to the face by Nicolas Hague.
“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.”
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.
“It’s good that our top guys are going,” Zuccarello said, “and we got contributions from deeper in the squad.”
The Wild picked up where they left off in the second, with Kaprizov’s attempt off a 2-on-1 dribbling behind Hill, but the Golden Knights did improve.
They finally pushed 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.
Gustavsson had 30 saves compared to 12 for Hill, and the Wild blocked 30 shots — more than double the Golden Knights’ 13.
“The big part is poise under pressure, playing smart, understanding how to manage those certain things,” Hynes said, “and I thought we did a fairly good job of that.”
Kaprizov’s 12 playoff goals are tied with Gaborik for second in Wild history, behind only Zach Parise’s 16, and his five points are tied for first in NHL playoff scoring; Boldy’s tied for first in goals with three.
Once again, the Wild’s stars shone but after Foligno, Hartman and Nyquist set the tone.
“First game was a little bit iffy by us,” Foligno said. “If we can get our line going, it’s going to help our team.”
Share
