ST. PAUL, MInn. (AP) — Ryan Hartman, Matt Boldy and Liam Ohgren scored 1 minute, 42 seconds apart early in the first period and the Minnesota Wild beat the Seattle Kraken 4-0 on Wednesday night.
Filip Gustavsson made 34 saves for his fifth shutout of the season, Boldy added an empty-net goal, and Minnesota moved within two points of third-place Colorado in the Central Division.
Gustavsson is 4-1-1 in his last six home games with a 1.48 goals-against average, a .949 save percentage and two shutouts.
Philipp Grubauer stopped 24 shots for Seattle.
Hartman scored from the slot 2:47 into the game, Boldy scored from almost the same spot at 3:59 and Ohgren completed a 2-on-1 with Frederick Gaudreau 30 seconds later for a 3-0 lead. The three goals in the opening 4:29 is the fastest to start a game in the NHL this season.
Prior to the outburst, the Wild had not scored a first-period goal in seven games, since March 4 in Seattle.
Takeaways
Kraken: Playing its fourth game in six days, Seattle outshot Minnesota 34-28, but lost in regulation for just the second time in seven games.
Wild: Center Marco Rossi, third on the team with 21 goals, left the game in the first period with a lower-body injury after being hit by a Boldy shot. He’s one of three Wild players to have played every game this season.
Key moment
Boldy’s goals were his first in 12 games. His 23 goals are tied with Kirill Kaprizov, who’s missed all but three games since Dec. 23, for the team lead.
Key stat
Seattle is 0-11 in the second game of the back-to-back contests this season. The Kraken won 6-2 in Chicago on Tuesday.
Up next
Both teams play Saturday: the Kraken are in Edmonton and the Wild are home against Buffalo.
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AP NHL: https://www.apnews.com/hub/NHL
Mike Cook, The Associated Press
