Minnesota Wild piling up points despite not having Kirill Kaprizov
Connor Dewar #26 of the Minnesota Wild celebrates with teammates Ryan Reaves #75 and Jon Merrill #4 after scoring a goal against the Arizona Coyotes during the second period at Mullett Arena on March 12, 2023 in Tempe, Arizona. ((Photo by Norm Hall/NHLI via Getty Images))
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - Despite not having their best player for probably the next month, the Minnesota Wild continues to pile up points in the Western Conference.
Star forward Kirill Kaprizov is out up to four weeks after suffering a lower body injury in a 4-2 win over the Winnipeg Jets last week. Without their top scorer, the Wild responded with a 5-2 win over the San Jose Sharks Saturday night.
Sunday, the Wild had a late lead at the Arizona Coyotes before falling 5-4 in overtime. The Wild has not only gotten three out of a possible four points without Kaprizov in the lineup, they’ve scored nine goals over the two games. Four different players cored Sunday, with tallies from Mats Zuccarello, Ryan Reaves, Matt Boldy and Connor Dewar.
The Wild had a 4-2 lead in the second period before the Coyotes rallied with three unanswered goals. Still, they tied a franchise record with at least one point in 13 straight games. The Wild is 1-0-1 without Kaprizov, and their 10 wins and 23 points since Feb. 17, when the point streak began, lead the NHL.
The Wild (38-21-8) is currently fourth in the Western Conference at 84 points, just one behind the L.A. Kings and Dallas Stars, and four points behind No. 1 Las Vegas. They’re second in the Central Division behind the Stars.