Game Preview: Wild vs. Penguins

SAINT PAUL, Minn. -- The Minnesota Wild hits the ice again tonight in Saint Paul, hosting the visiting Penguins. The Wild heads into the fourth match of a six-game home stand with three straight losses at home (1-2-2 in last five games).

Info for Tonight's Game:

• When: Thursday, October 30th at 7:00 p.m. CT
• Where: Grand Casino Arena (Saint Paul, Minnesota)
• Tickets: Buy Now
• Special Ticket Offer: Check out the Movember Ticket Pack! Offer includes a ticket to see the Wild battle the Penguins, an exclusive Movember SotaStick t-shirt, and a postgame on-ice group photo.
• Watch: FanDuel Sports North
• Listen: KFAN
• Gamecenter: Wild vs. Penguins

Wild Record: 3-5-3

Penguins Record: 7-2-2

2024-25 Series Record: 1-1-0

All-Time Wild Record: 16-17-2 (7-8-2 at Grand Casino Arena)

Last Time Out

Last Season on Wild vs. Penguins

Minnesota went 1-1-0 against the Penguins. The Wild won the seriesopening game, 5-3, at PPG Paints Arena (10/29), and Pittsburgh earned a 3-1 win in the series finale in Saint Paul.

C Freddy Gaudreau (2-1=3) and LW Kirill Kaprizov (1-2=3) led Minnesota with three points each. C Ryan Hartman (1- 0=1) and RW Mats Zuccarello (1-0=1) each scored a goal. G Marc-André Fleury went 1-1-0 with a 2.55 GAA and a .900 SV%.

C Sidney Crosby led the Penguins with five points (2-3=5). RW Rickard Rakell had three points (2-1=3). D Kris Letang (0-2=2) had two points. G Joel Blomqvist stopped 35-of-39 shots faced for Pittsburgh in the first meeting. G Tristan Jarry saved 29-of-30 shots faced in the second game

Wild Leaders Against Penguins

• LW Marcus Johansson leads Minnesota with 25 points (10-15=25) in 44 career games against Pittsburgh
• Zuccarello has 23 points (7-16=23) in 37 games
• D Zach Bogosian (4-9=13, in 33 games) and RW Vladimir Tarasenko (4-9=13, in 21 games) have 13 points each
• D Jonas Brodin has 12 points (3- 9=12) in 20 games

Penguins Leaders Against Wild

• Crosby leads Pittsburgh with 40 points (14-26=40) in 26 career games against Minnesota
• D Erik Karlsson owns 36 points (9-27=36) in 31 games
• C Evgeni Malkin owns 27 points (12-15=27) in 22 matches
• D Kris Letang (4-16=20 in 24 contests) and Rakell (13-7=20 in 34 games) own 20 points each

Connections

• Minnesota President of Hockey Operations and General Manager Bill Guerin totaled 57 points (26-31=57) in 95 games with Pittsburgh in two seasons (2008-10), winning the Stanley Cup in 2009
• Guerin spent eight seasons in the Penguins’ front office (2011-19), including five seasons (2014-19) as Assistant General Manager where he won two more Stanley Cups (2016, 2017)
• Minnesota Head Coach John Hynes served as Head Coach of Wilkes-Barre Scranton for five seasons (2010-15) and one season as an Assistant Coach (2009-10)
• Hynes led Wilkes-Barre to a record of 231-126-27 in 384 games (.636) and five consecutive appearances in the Calder Cup Playoffs as Head Coach
• Gustavsson was selected by Pittsburgh in the second round (55th overall) of the 2016 NHL Draft
• F Vinnie Hinostroza played in 14 games for Pittsburgh during the 2023-24 season, posting three points (1-2=3)
• Crosby played at Shattuck St. Mary’s (2002-03)
• C Connor Dewar was drafted by Minnesota in the third round (No. 92 overall) of the 2018 NHL Draft and collected 38 points (18-20=38) in 173 across three seasons (2021- 24) with the Wild
• D Matt Dumba was selected seventh overall by the Wild in the 2012 NHL Draft and collected 236 points (79-157=236), 399 PIM and a plus-29 rating in 598 games in 10 seasons (2013-23) with Minnesota
• C Tommy Novak played four seasons at the University of Minnesota (2015-19) and played high school hockey at St. Thomas Academy
• C Blake Lizotte is from Lindstrom and played two seasons at St. Cloud State University (2017-19)
• RW Justin Brazeau tallied two points (1-1=2) in 19 games with Minnesota last season
• Wild Player Development Advisor Alex Goligoski was selected by Pittsburgh in the second round (No. 61 overall) of the 2004 NHL Draft and recorded 90 points (3-67=90) in 177 games across four seasons (2007-11) with the Penguins
• Penguins Assistant Coach Nick Bonino appeared in 55 games and recorded 26 points (10- 16=26) in one season (2020-21) with the Wild
• Penguins Player Development Coach Matt Cullen was born in Virginia, Minn., played at Moorhead High School and St. Cloud State, and recorded 123 points (44-79=123) in 272 games across four seasons (2010-13, 2017-18) with the Wild

Fast Facts

• Minnesota is 2-1-0 against the Penguins in the last three meetings between the two teams

For more information on today's matchup, check out the game notes below.