By Tony Abbott -
There are superstars, there are Hart Trophy winners, and there are Hall of Famers. But there's nothing more terrifying than the [YOUR TEAM HERE] Killer. The guy who is liable to get a goal against your team every time they line up against your best defensemen. The player who can make you nervous in crunch time, even if no one else makes a peep against you.
Minnesota Wild fans are no strangers to this concept. Jarome Iginla was perhaps the most notorious Wild Killer of all time, notching 39 of his 625 games against Minnesota... and that's without the team even existing for his first four seasons. Twin incredible Colorado Avalanche centers, Joe Sakic (16 goals, 38 points in 41 games against Minnesota) and Nathan MacKinnon (24 goals, 64 points in 52 games), could also lay claim to that title.
But the Wild have, historically, been short on [OTHER TEAM] Killers. Their top goal-scorers, Marian Gaborik and Zach Parise, in particular, weren't known for being a thorn in the side of their top rivals.
Or at least, until now. We've seen enough, we're calling it:
Kirill Kaprizov is officially an Avalanche Killer.
According to NHL Network's Top-100 player rankings, the Wild faced off against the second (MacKinnon) and fourth-best (Cale Makar) players in the entire league. They rolled into Grand Casino Arena with one (one!!!) regulation loss in 23 games.
But Kaprizov was their equal as the Wild somehow went toe-to-toe with the Avs in a track meet. Kaprizov didn't score in overtime or the shootout, but he dragged Minnesota to the extra frame. His 200th and 201st goals were both the result of will over skill, crashing the net to cash in both times.
It's far from the first game Kaprizov has terrorized the Avalanche. Friday was his 13th and 14th career goals against Colorado, making the Avs the team he's scored the most goals against during his career. It's the most that anyone has scored against the Avalanche since Kaprizov entered the league. It's not even close.
Most Goals vs. Avalanche, since 2020-21:
1. Kirill Kaprizov, 14
T-2. David Pastrnak, 10
T-2. Kevin Fiala, 10
T-2. Gabriel Vilardi, 10
T-5. Tage Thompson, 9
T-5. Matt Duchene, 9
T-5. Tomas Hertl, 9
T-5. Evander Kane, 9
T-5. Adrian Kempe, 9
T-5. Joe Pavelski, 9
T-5. Jason Robertson, 9
T-5. Brayden Schenn, 9
T-5. Tyler Seguin, 9
It's just one example we see from Kaprizov of a true superstar trait: The ability to elevate his game against the best opponents.
Kaprizov, Most Career Goals Per Game vs. Any Team, Career
1. Columbus Blue Jackets, 1.25 (10 GP)
2. Boston Bruins, 1.20 (5 GP)
3. Tampa Bay Lightning, 1.00 (7 GP)
4. Buffalo Sabres, 0.86 (7 GP)
5. Detroit Red Wings, 0.83 (7 GP)
T-6. Vancouver Canucks, 0.75 (12 GP)
T-6. Carolina Hurricanes, 0.75 (8 GP)
T-6. Pittsburgh Penguins, 0.75 (8 GP)
9. Colorado Avalanche, 0.74 (19 GP)
10. Dallas Stars, 0.73 (11 GP)
Of the 10 teams against which Kaprizov scored at the highest rate, the four in bold are the ones that've gone to the Conference Finals during that time. Predictably, the highest-scoring rates are against Eastern Conference teams, where the sample size is smaller, but a similar trend holds when we look only at the Western Conference.
Kaprizov, Most Goals Per Game vs. Western Conference Teams, Career
1. Vancouver Canucks, 0.75 (12 GP)
2. Colorado Avalanche, 0.74 (19 GP)
3. Dallas Stars, 0.73 (11 GP)
4. Vegas Golden Knights, 0.65, (17 GP)
5. San Jose Sharks, 0.60 (20 GP)
Again, we see Kaprizov putting up his biggest numbers against the best teams. The Avs, Stars, Golden Knights, and Edmonton Oilers are the only four teams to have gone to a Conference Final since Kaprizov entered the league, and Kaprizov has been able to show up against all four teams.
Kaprizov vs. Colorado: 19 GP, 14 goals, 22 points
Kaprizov vs. Dallas: 11 GP, 8 goals, 16 points
Kaprizov vs. Edmonton: 14 GP, 1 goal, 14 points
Kaprizov vs. Vegas: 17 GP, 11 goals, 16 points
Kaprizov vs. WC Big 4: 61 GP, 34 goals, 68 points
We're talking about a 46-goal, 91-point pace against these teams. You'd say that bodes well for Kaprizov in the playoffs, except, well, that Kaprizov's been about as dangerous a goal-scorer in the playoffs as anyone. He's had boom-or-bust series in the postseason, but there's no denying the overall picture, either.
Goals Per Game, Playoffs, Since 2020-21 (minimum: 15 GP):
1. Nathan MacKinnon, 0.64
2. Adrian Kempe, 0.63
3. David Perron, 0.61
4. Kirill Kaprizov, 0.60
5. Chris Kreider, 0.56
6. Jake Guentzel, 0.55
7. Leon Draisaitl, 0.54
T-8. William Nylander, 0.50
T-8. David Pastrnak, 0.50
T-10. Brad Marchand, 0.49
T-10. Valeri Nichushkin, 0.49
No Wild fan needs to be told, "Kirill Kaprizov is good," of course. But as the question of "Did the Wild dramatically overpay for Kaprizov?" keeps bouncing around, it's games like this, against teams like the Avalanche, that show why he's priceless.
There's no one else in Wild history that you can reliably expect to get a goal against top, top teams like the Avalanche, the Lightning, the Stars, and the Golden Knights. It's not close. Black Friday might be the day of discounts, but in the State of Hockey, it was a reminder of why the team decided to pay list price on their superstar.
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