LAS VEGAS – The Wild won't be the only team traveling back to Minnesota.
Wild holds off the Knights again and again, wins 4-2 to take series back to the X
Minnesota scored three goals in the first period, including one by Zach Parise, and won Game 5 despite getting outshot 40-14 by the relentless Vegas offense.
May 25, 2021 at 11:19AM
So will the Golden Knights.
After shrugging off its scoring funk with a less-is-more strategy, the Wild extended its season and forced a Game 6 back at Xcel Energy Center by outlasting Vegas 4-2 on Monday in front of an announced crowd of 12,156 at T-Mobile Arena to trail the best-of-seven series 3-2.
The next must-win for the Wild is Wednesday at 8 p.m. in St. Paul.
"We're not going to start dreaming about winning the series until we get it done," defenseman Ian Cole. "But this was a great first step in that process."
Forwards Kirill Kaprizov, Zach Parise and Jordan Greenway each scored their first goals of these playoffs, combining in the first period to give the Wild a lead it'd narrowly preserve after coming close to blowing it on multiple occasions while managing a franchise-low 14 shots.
Center Nico Sturm banked a puck off the boards that trickled into an empty Vegas net with 39 seconds to go.
Wild goalie Cam Talbot made 38 saves, and Marc-Andre Fleury had 10.
"It was a grind," Talbot said. "But those are the kind of games you have to win on the road in a hostile environment like this, and we were able to do that."
This breakthrough by the Wild offense started early and after the team fell behind to the Golden Knights.
While the Wild was still searching for its first shot on net, Vegas opened the scoring after captain Mark Stone got loose in the Wild's zone and wired a puck by Talbot's glove 8 minutes, 14 seconds into the first period for his series-leading fourth goal.
But the Wild responded only 52 second later, converting on its first shot of the game.
Late in his shift, winger Mats Zuccarello led a rush into the offensive zone and dished off to a wide-open Kaprizov for a rising shot that handcuffed Fleury.
"That definitely gave us a boost," Wild coach Dean Evason said.
Not only did the finish snap the Wild's scoreless skid at 120:36, but the goal was Kaprizov's first in the playoffs. He's the seventh Wild rookie to record a playoff goal.
On the team's third shot, the Wild scored again – this time after Parise batted a bounce off the end boards off Fleury and into the net at 11:57. Parise, who was promoted from the fourth line to skate alongside winger Kevin Fiala and center Ryan Hartman, is the Wild's all-time leader in playoff goals (15) and points (35).
"I was pretty happy to see that one go in and give us a lead at the time," Parise said.
And then with 3:26 to go in the first, Greenway put the Wild up 3-1 on his third straight shot against Fleury – a determined finish after Greenway hauled the puck through the neutral zone and into Vegas territory for his first goal of the series and second career in the playoffs.
"It was rewarding for obviously myself but for the entire squad just to know that if we take advantage of our opportunities and create the quality chances that we did we can score and we can have the success that we had tonight," Greenway said.
Rookie defenseman Calen Addison, who was making his postseason debut in place of the injured Carson Soucy, earned his first career point on the play for his assist during a give-and-go with Greenway.
Overall, the Wild scored three times on just six shots. The three goals are also the most by the Wild in the first period in the team's playoff history.
But much like the first, the Golden Knights were in control to begin the second.
And again, they took advantage.
Soon after winger Marcus Foligno saved a goal by sweeping a puck away from the goal line after it got behind Talbot, defenseman Alec Martinez scored on a one-timer from inside the right faceoff circle on the power play at 9:43. Vegas' power play finished 1-for-2, while the Wild didn't get an opportunity.
Ultimately, the Golden Knights outshot the Wild 14-0 before the Wild put its first shot on net of the period – a 30-plus foot wrister by winger Nick Bonino with 7:15 to go in the second. And that was the lone shot the Wild had in the period, a franchise low for a single period in a playoff game.
Meanwhile, the Golden Knights continued to swarm the Wild. Winger Alex Tuch nearly tied the game on three shots before the period mercifully ended for the Wild with the team still sporting a slim one-goal lead despite giving up 22 shots that tied the franchise record for the most given up by the Wild in a period in the playoffs.
"Some guys were out there for two, three icings in a row and couldn't get off," Talbot said. "But we never quit. We were doing everything we could putting everything we could in front of the puck."
Vegas applied similar in the third period, but the Wild handled it better and mixed in a few more shots to hold on in the game and the series.
"It's the first step in a very long process, very long journey to getting this done," Cole said. "We just have to keep going. The series isn't over. We've got to win Game 6."
The NHL’s coaching carousel revealed itself again, a fight reminded us what has changed, and of course there was unpredictable matter involving a goalie.
