Kaprizov, Boldy shine again, Wild chase Golden Knights' goalie in Game 3 victory: Takeaways

By / / Sports / 7 minutes of reading


By Michael Russo, Jesse Granger and Joe Smith

ST. PAUL, Minn. — If the Vegas Golden Knights don’t quickly find an answer to neutralize Minnesota Wild first-liners Kirill Kaprizov and Matt Boldy, their aspirations for a second Stanley Cup championship in three years will be doused.

The Wild stars put on another show on Thursday night in Game 3, as each recorded two points and helped chase Adin Hill from Vegas’ net by the start of the third period during a 5-2 victory that had fans inside Xcel Energy Center screaming, dancing and waving towels all night.

Kaprizov scored two power-play goals and Boldy a goal and assist as the Wild took a 2-1 lead in the first-round series, with Game 4 to be played Saturday afternoon.

Conversely, Golden Knights first-liners Jack Eichel and Mark Stone have zero points in the series.

Marco Rossi became the fourth Austrian in NHL history to score a playoff goal, Zeev Buium became became the second player in Wild history to record his first career point in the playoffs (after Calen Addison against Vegas in 2021) and Filip Gustavsson made 30 saves, including nine in short-handed situations. Marcus Foligno added a late empty-net goal.

The Wild’s season-long maligned penalty kill, which was scored upon twice in Game 1, went 4-for-4 in Game 3.

Alex Pietrangelo and Reilly Smith scored for Vegas.

Don’t jump for joy yet if you’re a Wild fan, and here’s some solace if you’re a Golden Knights fan. The Wild, who haven’t advanced past the first round since 2015, have held a lead in their past four series that they have lost and have held a 2-1 series lead in their previous two.

Kaprizov, Boldy dominating Knights

Kaprizov’s two goals gave him seven points, putting him in a tie for the playoff league lead with Adrian Kempe of the Los Angeles Kings. Boldy’s two goals put him in a tie with Kaprizov for the league lead with four goals.

The Wild’s two stars are on fire this series and are devouring the Golden Knights’ defensemen.

There was no bigger example in Thursday’s game then Boldy, on a hard forecheck, forcing Noah Hanifin into Minnesota’s latest gift. Boldy forced the giveaway, came around the net and fired the puck right through Hill, who has allowed 10 goals in eight periods in this series.

Kaprizov’s second power-play goal came with 1.3 seconds left in the second period when Ryan Hartman, who has 13 points in 14 playoff games over the past three Wild postseasons, looked at the clock, saw how little time there was left and flung a puck at the net from the half wall.

Kaprizov and Boldy became the first Wild players in history with multiple points in each of the Wild’s first three contests during a postseason.

Kaprizov now has 14 goals in 22 career playoff games — two behind Zach Parise’s franchise record, set in 22 more games (44).

Boldy tied Parise (three games in 2018) for the second-longest goal streak to begin a postseason in Wild history. Mikko Koivu set the record in 2008 with a four-game goal streak to begin a postseason.

According to NHL Network analyst and Sportlogiq director of analytics Mike Kelly, the Golden Knights have allowed six turnover goals in three games — most of any playoff team. Vegas allowed the fourth-fewest in the regular season.

Gustavsson settles in

One of Gustavsson’s strengths this season has been letting go. He didn’t take games — or bad goals — personally. That quick bounce-back ability — partly learned from future Hall of Famer Marc-Andre Fleury — served Gustavsson well as he was the Wild’s team MVP this season. And in Thursday’s Game 3, Gustavsson’s short memory helped him settle in during Minnesota’s victory.

Pietrangelo’s goal midway through the first period — a point shot with no screen or deflection — was one Gustavsson would like to have back. It made it a 2-1 game, giving the Golden Knights some life. But Gustavsson was sharp after that, especially on second- and third-period power plays, when he not only controlled his rebounds but swallowed pucks to keep Vegas at bay.

With the Wild up just 4-2 and six minutes left, Gustavsson made two huge saves on a Golden Knights power play — a glove stop on Eichel and a save on a point-blank look by Tomas Hertl in the slot.

Hynes’ instincts pay off

Wild coach John Hynes insinuated Wednesday afternoon that he was considering tweaking the third defense pair and maybe even the fourth line.

The speculation was that Zeev Buium, after being on the ice for three goals against in Games 1 and 2, could come out of the lineup for a breather and that Jon Merrill would be inserted — and that Rossi might swap places with Freddy Gaudreau on the second line, and perhaps Vinnie Hinostroza would come in for Justin Brazeau.

On Thursday morning, during the Wild’s optional morning skate, Hynes announced there’d be no lineup changes.

“We liked a lot of our game for the last two games,” Hynes explained. “I think our team is mentally in a good spot. I’m also a big believer at times of, you have a reason or an instinct to make a change. Sometimes, the instinct isn’t there, or the facts maybe aren’t really there to make the decision. So you go with what you think is right, and you talk to some players and give them another chance.”

Well, in the first period, Buium recorded his first NHL point on Kaprizov’s power-play goal through Joel Eriksson Ek’s screen, and won a board battle against Nicolas Roy. At 19 years, 138 days, Buium became the second-youngest player in Wild history to record his first playoff point (Pierre-Marc Bouchard was 19 years, 19 days, in Game 4 of the 2003 Western Conference final against Anaheim).

Then, 3:38 later, Rossi, remaining on the fourth line despite being the Wild’s second-leading scorer in the regular season, buried his first career playoff goal from the slot off passes from Trenin and Brazeau.

Remember, Hynes’ inclination to swap Ryan Hartman and Rossi in Game 2 was a big catalyst for that victory.

Slow start hurts Vegas again

The Golden Knights have struggled with slow starts for most of the season. It continued Thursday night in Minnesota, as Vegas began the game with two penalties and two goals allowed in the first seven minutes of the game.

It began with a too-many-men penalty less than three minutes in. Kaprizov cashed in quickly with a shot through traffic that beat Hill to open the scoring. Nic Hague took a tripping penalty minutes later, and while Vegas killed that penalty, the Wild struck again shortly after that with a one-timer in front by Rossi.

Vegas eventually settled into the game, got a goal from Pietrangelo and controlled possession as the first frame went on, but the slow start forced the Golden Knights to chase the game yet again.

Hill yanked for Schmid

Cassidy pulled Hill after he allowed four goals on 21 shots over the first two periods, replacing him with Akira Schmid for the final 20 minutes.

Hill has struggled over the last two games, and has a dismal .825 save percentage thus far in the playoffs. He had been a top playoff performer for the Golden Knights over each of the last two years. He was brilliant with a .932 save percentage over 14 starts in Vegas’ Stanley Cup run in 2023, finishing third in Conn Smythe Trophy voting. Last season’s run was much shorter, but Hill posted a .931 save percentage in three games against the Stars.

The start to these playoffs has been very different. The Golden Knights’ defense hasn’t done Hill many favors over the first three games, but he also hasn’t been strong enough to help overcome some of the defensive lapses. He hasn’t allowed many goals that would be considered “soft,” but he also hasn’t made the type of saves that Vegas has grown used to, especially in the playoffs.

He has struggled seeing through traffic on shots from the point, which was the case on Kaprizov’s opening goal on Thursday night. Many of the goals have been on difficult situations, with Hill one-on-one with one of the Wild stars, so those instances are tough to blame on Hill, but Cassidy clearly wants more out of his starting netminder.

Schmid stopped the nine shots he faced in the third period in relief. It will be interesting to see how Hill responds to the pull in Game 4 on Saturday afternoon.

(Photo of Kirill Kaprizov: David Berding / Getty Images)





Source link

Start typing and press enter to search

Scroll to Top