Kirill Kaprizov was on the ice for a shift of 59 seconds Thursday night when he scored the overtime game-winner against Vancouver — and that was after the Wild winger started the overtime with a minute-long shift.
But he didn't describe those efforts as the most taxed he's felt through Week 1 of the season.
"Every single shift feels like it's tiring when you make a lot of mistakes [and] you don't do well in your own zone," Kaprizov said through an interpreter after the 4-3 victory, the Wild's first of the season. "I would say every single shift is difficult having the first three games gone the way they did."
Thanks in part to Kaprizov's marathon finish, the Wild finally turned the page on their season-opening rut. They opened the season with four consecutive home games but lost the first three before Thursday's win.
That Kaprizov, off an assist from linemate Mats Zuccarello, uncorked the celebration shouldn't be surprising. Lost in the shuffle of the teamwide defensive lapses that led to the Wild's 0-3 start is the Kaprizov-Zuccarello combination continuing to churn out offense, a consistency that's become amplified as the losing streak has ended.
"First of all, we gotta keep the puck out of our net," Zuccarello said. "I feel like every time we're out there you're getting scored against. That just happens sometimes, and hopefully that's gonna turn around. But always nice to contribute to get a win."
After each recorded a game-high three points vs. Vancouver, Kaprizov and Zuccarello are tied for the team lead in goals (four) and points (eight) and both finished the night tied for fourth in NHL scoring.
They're on four-game point streaks, with this the longest run to start an NHL season in Zuccarello's nearly 700-game career.
