Marc-Andre Fleury, Wild win fourth in a row by shutting out Columbus 2-0

A return to the road didn't interrupt the Wild's rhythm.

They nabbed their fourth straight victory on Thursday, dumping the Blue Jackets 2-0 at Nationwide Arena to end a five-game rut as the visitor.

This is the Wild's longest win streak since they won six in a row Dec. 10-21.

How the Wild won: Goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury racked up 30 saves for his second shutout of the season, 73rd in his NHL career and first ever vs. Columbus.

He's now blanked a league-record 29 NHL franchises, all except the Wild, Blues and Golden Knights.

"I felt good," Fleury told reporters in Columbus. "Felt good mentally, physically, pretty relaxed."

Fleury was making his first start in four games and handled the Blue Jackets' pressure to shake off a personal three-game skid.

One of Fleury's best sequences came late in the third period when he teamed up with Matt Dumba, who had a block, to fend off five attempts by Columbus Overall, Wild skaters got in front of 25 pucks.

"It was such a mad scramble," Fleury said. "I saw a replay, and I saw [Dumba's] two-pad stack, and he got a piece with his shoulder. That was pretty nice to watch."

Brandon Duhaime and Kirill Kaprizov supplied the goals, both at 5-on-5, and the penalty kill improved to 22-for-22 over the past 10 games after snuffing out Columbus' only look on the power play; the Wild also went 0-for-1.

Turning point: The Wild's performance in the first period set the tone for a businesslike win over the Eastern Conference's last-place team.

Just 3 minutes, 1 seconds into the first period, Duhaime pounced on a loose puck in the crease for his second goal in the past three games.

"That's what we stressed was a big start," Duhaime said.

This marked the first time the Wild had two goals in the first period since they led 2-0 after one on Jan. 10 against the New York Rangers. The Wild are 21-5-3 when scoring first.

"You're not chasing the game," Fleury said. "You have the lead. You can dictate the play a bit. You don't have to force plays and have to open up. That leads us to playing better defensively and not giving as much to the other team."

What it means: Not only did the Wild snatch the third seed in the Central Division from Colorado, but they earned that two-point separation with a new-look lineup.

The team was without defenseman Jonas Brodin, on injured reserve with a nagging lower-body injury. Jon Merrill also was missing from the blue line because he's sick and did not travel.

Up front Marcus Foligno was back in action, his first game since he blocked a shot with his left knee on Feb. 13 vs. Florida. Foligno took Adam Beckman's spot.

"We liked our defense period," coach Dean Evason said. "The six guys that played and obviously Flower but the forwards, too. We competed."

Although this version of the Wild passed their first test, the next challenge on Friday is against a top-five squad in Toronto to wrap up this two-game road trip.

"To have a lead and play a stingy defensive game is absolutely perfect for us," Evason said.