Add another milestone to Kirill Kaprizov's growing list of accomplishments.
His goal Saturday in the 3-2 win over Carolina was his 20th, making him the first player in Wild history who debuted with the team to post back-to-back 20-goal seasons at the start of his NHL career.
"He knows he needs to produce every game, and he accepts that challenge," teammate Dmitry Kulikov said. "I think the more you ask of him, the more he's trying to produce."
Already among Kaprizov's collection of goals are more than a few highlight-reel finishes, like moving the puck between his legs before cutting to the middle and scoring last April 23 at Los Angeles.
What stands out to the winger is his first hat trick March 12 vs. Arizona at Xcel Energy Center even though there wasn't a crowd on hand to participate in the celebration.
"There were no fans in the stands, which was too bad," Kaprizov said earlier this month in Russian through a translator.
Another memorable tally was his wraparound move while falling to the ice Feb. 26, also against the Kings, one of his most resilient goals to date. Kaprizov also recalled a play May 3 when the Wild hosted Vegas that wasn't as flashy, a top-shelf shot on a rebound. But the goal tied the score at 5 with 1 minute, 32 seconds to go in the third period, and the Wild went on to win 6-5 after Jonas Brodin capitalized 26 seconds later.
"It's not really the beautiful goals that come to mind," Kaprizov said. "It's the important goals, tying the game, putting us ahead."