Wild 3-1 Win Over Hurricanes; Kaprizov Sets Franchise Record For Points In A Season
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Marc-Andre Fleury made 37 saves in another victory since joining Minnesota less than two weeks ago, as the Wild beat the Carolina Hurricanes 3-1 on Saturday night.
Mats Zuccarello and Kirill Kaprizov each had a goal and an assist for the Wild, who won for the eighth time in their last nine games and extended their points streak to nine games. Dmitry Kulikov also scored.
Fleury is 3-0-0 since he was acquired from the Chicago Blackhawks. He has stopped 92 of 96 shots in those games.
Fleury was closing in on his first shutout with his new team until Carolina's Teuvo Teravainen scored with 6:19 to play.
Kaprizov has set the franchise record for points in a season with 85 after entering the game tied with Marian Gaborik from the 2007-08 season.
The Hurricanes had a six-game points streak end. They last failed to notch a point in 2-0 home loss to the New York Rangers on March 20.
Frederik Andersen stopped 16 shots, but the Hurricanes lost in regulation for just the sixth time in 35 home games (25-6-4).
Zuccarello scored for the first time in 10 games on a power-play blast at 10:20 of the first period.
Kulikov's goal came just six seconds after he exited the penalty box. He took Tyson Jost's pass and peppered the puck through Andersen at 4:10 of the second period. That was Kulikov's fifth goal of the season, but the defenseman's first since Feb. 16.
Kaprizov's team-best 39th goal came at 7:24 of the third. He has a six-game goals streak as the Wild began a four-game road trip with a strong performance.
WOUNDED WILD
Minnesota had a couple of lineup changes based on injuries.
Defenseman Jon Merrill didn't make the trip after exiting Thursday night's matchup with Pittsburgh with an upper-body injury. Alex Goligoski rejoined the lineup.
Left winger Matt Boldy had played every game since the 2019 first-round draft choice made his NHL debut Jan. 6 at Boston. He's banged up and was replaced in the lineup by center Nick Bjugstad, who made his first appearance since March 16.
UP NEXT
Wild: At Washington on Sunday.
Hurricanes: At Buffalo on Tuesday to begin a home-and-home set.
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