The Minnesota Wild took on the Carolina Hurricanes for the second time this season on Wednesday night, Nov. 19, to finish out their five-game homestand. The first meeting went in favor of the Hurricanes 4-3 back on Nov. 6 in Carolina. The Wild looked to extend their win streak after taking down both the Anaheim Ducks and Vegas Golden Knights earlier in the week.
Jesper Wallstedt was back between the pipes after Filip Gustavsson had the previous start. The Wild were hit with the injury bug once again as they added Ryan Hartman to the list; he joined Marco Rossi, Zach Bogosian, and Nico Sturm. The game started out in favor of the Wild, and although the Hurricanes pushed back, the Wild got the win. In this article, we’ll look at some takeaways, starting with the top line’s performance.
Wild’s Yurov Fits in Well on Top Line
With the injuries to the lineup recently, the lines obviously had to be juggled, and that meant Danila Yurov was put on the top line between Mats Zuccarello and Kirill Kaprizov. While that would be a lot for any rookie, Yurov fit in almost immediately as he helped set up the Wild’s first goal with a great pass to Zuccarello, who took a shot that Brock Faber deflected.
The top line’s success didn’t stop there either, as they scored a crucial goal 15 seconds into the third period to give their team a two-goal lead once again. While Zuccarello and Kaprizov will get most of the attention, Yurov had a strong game as well with two assists, for his first multi-point night of his NHL career. His second assist wasn’t quite as flashy as the first; it mostly deflected up to Kaprizov, but he got it there.
“Yeah, he’s making plays, he’s very responsible, he’s always in the right spot, that offense is gonna come, like I said it’s hard, it’s not that easy, especially as a young guy playing center and having a lot of responsibility and then playing with Zuccy (Zuccarello) and Kirill (Kaprizov)’s a whole beast in it’s own, so I thought he was awesome,” said Boldy about Yurov’s performance.
Wild’s Wallstedt Shines Again
Once again, Jesper Wallstedt came up big for his team against a tough opponent. He continues to find ways to improve his game every time he plays and sees pucks others don’t see. Although he did have a puck slide in off his leg, he didn’t let it affect his mental game and continued to play strong. His speed and ability to see through traffic helped him keep his team in the lead all game until the final few minutes.