Postgame Hat Trick: Blues 5, Wild 4 (OT)

On Thursday night, the Wild lost 5-4 in overtime against the St. Louis Blues at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul.
Wild.com's Dan Myers provides three takeaways in the Postgame Hat Trick, presented by Associated Bank. Learn more on how to score up to $500 by opening a Wild Checking account.

1. Kirill the Thrill, strikes again.
Needing a goal to tie late in regulation, indeed it was rookie Kirill Kaprizov who evened the scored and forced the bonus session.

And it was in typical Kaprizov snipe fashion, beating goaltender Ville Husso with an absolute rocket for his 23rd goal of the season.
In a game where the Wild trailed by three goals at one point and was behind most of the game, it marked a fantastic comeback and a big point in the standings as Minnesota aims for home ice or a division title. For the second time this season, however, it was Ryan O'Reilly securing the bonus point for St. Louis in overtime.
2. Keep on truckin'.
While still waiting for a good nickname to crop up for the line of Ek, Marcus Foligno and Jordan Greenway, that group found the scoreboard again on Thursday night.

After accounting for all three of the Wild's goals on Wednesday night, it got Minnesota on the board late in the second when Ek continued his breakout offensive campaign by tallying his 17th goal of the season, firing a shot from the right circle past Husso.
Foligno and Greenway earned the helpers.
3. Avoiding the losing streak.
All season long, the Wild has been able to avoid three consecutive losses, making them one of just a couple teams in the NHL to do that.
Well, here we are in the final couple weeks of the regular season and Minnesota will be tasked with avoiding a three-game skid once again.
It happened earlier this month after consecutive losses in St. Louis, as the Wild was able to come home, beat Arizona then rattle off seven wins in a row.
This time, the Wild will have to find a way to solve the Blues, which has caused problems for it all season. Minnesota dropped to 1-2-2 in five games against the Blues, but will have a chance to redeem itself on Saturday night.