Preview: Wild at Penguins

PITTSBURGH -- The Minnesota Wild heads to Pittsburgh to face the Penguins tonight before heading to Boston to face the Bruins on Tuesday.

Info for Tonight's Game:

• When: Monday, December 18 at 6:00 p.m. CT
• Where: PPG Paints Arena (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania)
• Watch: Bally Sports North
• Listen: KFAN 100.3 FM

Wild Record: 12-12-4, 28 points, 7th in Central Division

Penguns Record: 13-13-3, 29 points, 7th in Metropolitan Division

2022-23 Series Record: 0-2-0

Wild vs. Penguins All-Time Record: 14-15-2 (8-8-0 at Pittsburgh)

Last Time Out

The Wild won in a shootout over the Vancouver Canucks, 2-1, on Saturday afternoon (12/16) at Xcel Energy Center. F Frederick Gaudreau was the lone-goal scorer in regulation for the Wild. F Mats Zuccarello scored in the shootout to earn the two points for Minnesota. G Filip Gustavsson saved 35-of-36 shots on goal (.972 SV%). 

The Penguins were shutout by the Maple Leafs, 7-0, on Saturday in Toronto. Goaltenders Tristan Jarry and Alex Nedeljkovic both played in the contest. Jarry made 10-of-14 saves (.714 SV%) for the loss and Nedeljkovic stopped 18-of-21 for an .857 SV%.

What Happened Last Time?

The Penguins defeated the Wild, 4-1, on April 6, 2023. F Marcus Johansson scored Minnesota's only goal, a power play goal. G Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 27-of-31 shots on net (.871 SV%). 

D Kris Letang, F Rickard Rakell, F Jason Zucker and F Jeff Carter scored for Pittsburgh. Jarry stopped 27-of-28 shots for a .964 SV%.

Players to Watch

• F Matt Boldy is T-4th in the NHL with seven goals scored since Nov. 28 and T-10th with a plus-7 rating during that span and has scored goals in six of the team’s last nine games
• Fleury is currently at 548 career wins and needs four wins to pass Patrick Roy (551 career wins) for second-most in NHL history
• F Joel Eriksson Ek leads Minnesota with 14 goals and six PPGs this season and is T-3rd in the Central Division in goals scored
• F Marco Rossi is second in goals (10), T-2nd in points (10-7=17), fifth in shots on goal (56) and is T-5th with a plus-6 rating among NHL rookies
• F Sidney Crosby is T-5th in the NHL and first on his team in goals (17) and is second on his team in points (17-14=31)
• F Jake Guentzel leads the Penguins in points (13-19=32)
• D Erik Karlsson ranks first among team defensemen in goals and assists (6-15=21)

Recent Transactions

The Wild recalled D Daemon Hunt, F Vinni Lettieri and D Dakota Mermis from Iowa and placed D Jonas Brodin on Long-Term Injured Reserve (12/13).

Injury Report

Captain D Jared Spurgeon (lower body) is day-to-day and D Jonas Brodin has been placed on LTIR.

To view Minnesota's full Injury Report, visit wild.com/injury.

Fast Facts

• The Wild went 9-2-1 in its first 12 meetings against the Penguins and is 3-7-1 in its last 11 meetings

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
• Fleury was selected by the Penguins first overall in the 2003 NHL Draft and went 375-216-68 with a 2.58 GAA, a .912 SV% and 44 shutouts in 691 career games (667 starts) in 13 seasons (2003-17)
  • He posted a 62-51 record with a 2.65 GAA, a .908 SV% and 10 shutouts in 115 career playoff contests (113 starts) with Pittsburgh and won the Stanley Cup in 2009, 2016 and 2017
• Gaudreau collected 10 points (2-8=10) in 19 games with the Penguins in 2020-21
• D Alex Goligoski was drafted by the Penguins in the second round (61st overall) of the 2004 NHL Draft and recorded 90 points (23-67=90) in 177 games during parts of four seasons with Pittsburgh (2007-11) and won the Stanley Cup in 2009
• Gustavsson was selected by Pittsburgh in the second round (55th overall) of the 2016 NHL Draft
• Crosby played at Shattuck St. Mary’s (2002-03)
• Guentzel played high school hockey at Hill-Murray

For more information on tonight's contest, check out the game notes below.