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Sometimes, all it requires is one single guy to have an insane game to win the game for our favorite hockey team.
On Sunday night, while facing the bottom-feeding San Jose Sharks, the Minnesota Wild went down way too early. After letting the Sharks score two unanswered goals through the first 25 minutes, the Wild responded with two of their own before the second intermission.
This see-saw of a period was quickly silenced after Anthony Duclair scored just 23 seconds into the third period. A loss felt inevitable -- and an embarrassing loss at that. Well, until Kirill Kaprizov decided to just put the whole team on his back and score his second just a couple minutes after Duclair's tally to even the score.
And then, with the pressure of the world, it was of course Kaprizov again to complete his hat trick in the final minutes of the game to win the night and walk away with two points.
This is hero stuff. The ability that separates the very best players in the world from just the very good.
With 20 games remaining, the Wild still find themselves in a terrible situation considering their goal is making the playoffs. There is now a sizeable gap between the second Wild Card spot and the other clubs standing on the outside looking in -- seven points to be exact -- and the Wild are part of that four-team group who are within 10 points of the playoffs but are all just scratching and clawing for a sniff.
That's Wild
- Want to know just exactly what Marat Khusnutdinov can bring to this Wild team? We broke down some of his highlights from his play in the KHL. [Hockey Wilderness]
- Within one week, because of the results around them and their own games, the Wild's playoff odds dropped 20 percent. [The Hockey News]
Off the trail...
- The Penguins and Oilers faced each other like ships passing in the night in terms of future standings. Pittsburgh is the past, and the Oilers are firmly in the present. [Sportsnet]
- Some trade rumor buzz surrounding Noah Hanifin and Jake Guentzel. [ESPN]
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