Virtanen scored at 10:07 of the third period. He has three points (two goals, one assist) in a three-game point streak.
"I think if anyone got that goal, that's a big goal," Virtanen said. "It's a good end to the road trip for us, and we're going to bring that momentum back home."
WATCH: [All Canucks vs. Wild highlights]
It was Nilsson's second shutout of the season. He made 32 saves in a 3-0 win against the Ottawa Senators on Oct. 17.
"I felt good tonight, but tonight was a huge team victory," Nilsson said. "I think the guys in front of me, they probably blocked more shots than I made saves tonight, so it was real easy to play goal tonight, and it was fun to see the guys in front of you, how much they battled, how many shots they blocked. So, yeah, huge team victory and important two points for us."
The Canucks (5-3-1) extend their winning streak to three games and went 4-1-0 on their road trip.
"You've got to win games different ways," Canucks coach Travis Green said. "This is a good Minnesota team, their structure is good. It's hard to get scoring chances against them, and we knew that going in, that we'd have to play a 60-minute game if we wanted to win. And we did.
"At the end of a trip, it was a hard-fought win. We didn't have the best first period, but I like how we stuck with it. I thought we had a real good second period and found a way to win it in the third."
Devan Dubnyk made 24 saves for the Wild (2-3-2), who began a six-game homestand after playing five of their first six on the road.
"I'm just disappointed that we lost, whether it's the home or the road," Minnesota coach Bruce Boudreau said. "You love to win at home in front of your fans. I would've been just as disappointed to start a road trip with a loss. No matter if it's home or away, when you lose, you're not happy."
