Pointing out Zuccarello: After his three-point effort Thursday in the 5-4 win over the Lightning, winger Mats Zuccarello moved into sole possession of eighth place for the most regular-season points all-time in the NHL among undrafted players born outside North America who debuted after the first amateur draft in 1963. His 371 points are the most among Norwegian players.
Extra effort: Winger Jordan Greenway was credited with an assist on the Wild's first goal vs. Tampa, a behind-the-net pass that center Joel Eriksson Ek buried, but it was Greenway's work earlier in his shift that put the play in motion. Battling amid a sea of pressure from the Lightning, Greenway kept pushing the puck up the boards in the neutral zone until he broke free and skated into the offensive zone for a shot that goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy batted away. Impressive individual efforts like that have been the norm lately, helping to explain the Wild's recent resurgence.
Going for goal: Only 11 goalies in NHL history have scored a goal, but Wild rookie Kaapo Kahkonen nearly became the 12th on Tuesday when his attempt at an empty net cruised just wide against the Panthers. Finding an open lane and aiming in the right direction to compensate for the spin of the puck are essential to hitting the target, but Kahkonen has done that in the past — scoring three times in Finland. "If you got a chance," he said, "I like to go for it."
Shootout goal
Chasing history: Keep an eye on Boston's David Pastrnak, whose blistering scoring pace to open the season has him in contention for the elusive 50-in-50 feat. The last time a player scored 50 goals in 50 games was when Brett Hull did it in 1991-92. Wayne Gretzky accomplished it the most (three times), and overall 50 has been scored in 50 games on eight occasions. What makes Pastrnak's run impressive regardless is he's contributing meaningful goals; a fifth of his 25 goals through 29 games are game-winners for a Bruins team that looks like the early Stanley Cup favorite even though the Capitals have more points.
Sarah McLellan
