Kirill Kaprizov scores twice to lead the Wild past the Flyers 4-1
Minnesota Wild goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury (29) follows the action during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Philadelphia Flyers, Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024, in St. Paul, Minn. Credit: AP/Ellen Schmidt
ST. PAUL, Minn. — Kirill Kaprizov scored twice to reach 20 goals for the season as the Minnesota Wild beat the Philadelphia Flyers 4-1 on Saturday.
Matt Boldy and Marco Rossi also scored, and Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 20 of 21 shots he faced as the Wild — at least temporarily — took the league lead in points with 44.
Samuel Ersson made 19 saves for the Flyers, who spoiled Fleury's shutout bid on Travis Sanheim's goal with just under six minutes remaining.
Kaprizov opened the scoring with a high shot from a bad angle that deflected off Ersson's helmet and into the net. He added an empty-net score with 2:10 remaining.
Boldy scored on a breakaway in the second, and Rossi completed a nifty 2-on-1 with Mats Zuccarello, who returned after missing 12 games with a lower-body injury.
Takeaways
Flyers: Philadelphia saw its seven-game points streak on the road come to an end.
Wild: Minnesota was coming off a 7-1 drubbing by Edmonton on Thursday. The Wild have not lost consecutive games in regulation this season. They welcomed Zuccarello and Joneas Brodin back to the lineup after lengthy absences, and each player had an assist.
Minnesota Wild center Marat Khusnutdinov (22) battles for the puck with Philadelphia Flyers center Sean Couturier (14) and right wing Matvei Michkov (39) during the second period of an NHL hockey game, Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024, in St. Paul, Minn. Credit: AP/Ellen Schmidt
Key moment
With the teams playing 4-on-4 late in the second period, Wild defenseman Brock Faber tracked down a loose puck in the corner of his defensive zone and lifted a long breakout pass toward center ice. Boldy beat everybody to the puck, deked Ersson to the ice and flipped a forehand shot into the net for a 2-0 lead.
Key stat
The Flyers' power play went 0 for 3 against Minnesota’s 30th-ranked penalty kill.
Up next
The Wild host Vegas on Sunday, while the Flyers visit Detroit on Wednesday.
