The Minnesota Wild passed their first test without star winger Kirill Kaprizov. They will look to continue that good fortune on Thursday night when they visit the Montreal Canadiens.
Squaring off with nearly identical records entering Wednesday’s contest, the Toronto Maple Leafs were presented with a key opportunity to get out of a rut against a quality Minnesota Wild team, with a four-game road trip on the horizon before the 4 Nations Face-Off break.
The Minnesota Wild survived without Kirill Kaprizov the first time, and they can do it again. That’s the message they sent Wednesday, when they upended the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-1 at Scotiabank Arena to kick off Kaprizov’s second hiatus with their most convincing victory in weeks.
The duo won a pair of Stanley Cups together with the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2016 and 2017. Although it was Filip Gustavsson and Joseph Woll tending the net for the Minnesota Wild and Toronto Maple Leafs on Wednesday, there was a special reunion that took place with the backup goaltenders at Scotiabank Arena.
The Minnesota Wild have the league's best road record at 18-5-3 this season and have already beat the Toronto Maple Leafs earlier this season
Identifying the holes in the Leafs' lineup is fairly straightforward. Patching them at the trade deadline? Much less so.
Against Minnesota, William Nylander provided Toronto’s lone goal. The defeat marked the team’s third straight regulation loss, a tough stretch before the Maple Leafs embark on a four-game Western Canada trip leading up to the 4 Nations Face-Off pause.
Rielly has two points in his last 11 games with Toronto and admitted after Wednesday's 3-1 loss to Minnesota that he needs to be better.
That's Wild The Minnesota Wild started a very important road trip north of the border Wednesday night by visiting the Maple Leafs in Toronto. The Wild, who were 2-2-0 in their previous four games, have been just holding steady as they have suffered a dangerous injury bug.
TORONTO - Filip Gustavsson made 31 saves as the Minnesota Wild edged Toronto 3-1 on Wednesday, sending the Maple Leafs to a third straight regulation loss.
BOTTOM LINE: The Toronto Maple Leafs and the Minnesota Wild hit the ice in a non-conference matchup. Toronto is 19-10-0 at home and 30-18-2 overall. The Maple Leafs have a 13-5-1 record when scoring a power-play goal.