Kaprizov proves 'grind-it-out' Wild are a thing of the past

In its 20 years as a franchise, the Wild have been in more than its fair share of games like the first 40 minutes of its game against the Arizona Coyotes on Friday night.
Scoreless through two periods, the goaltending was outstanding, but Minnesota just couldn't find an offensive spark or two to support its stellar work in the defensive zone.
Sounds familiar right?

Well, that's simply not the 2020-21 version of the Minnesota Wild, and it's largely because of Kirill Kaprizov.
The rookie forward wrote another memorable chapter and accomplished yet another first in his career, netting his first NHL hat trick - scoring all three goals in the third period - lifting the Wild to a 4-0 win at Xcel Energy Center.
Unlike seasons past, Friday's game simply never had the feel of one where the opponent seemed destined to score one and escape town with a hard-fought win.
Things got dicey at times, for sure, but Wild fans have quickly learned that no game is out of reach with No. 97 on the ice.
Kaprizov had the look of a player eager to take the game over once the puck dropped in the third period. And sure enough, he did just that.

"Players like that are very special, and they don't come around that often," said Wild goaltender Cam Talbot. "Having a guy like him on your team in a 0-0 game, you always feel like you have a chance for sure."
"Anytime he's out there, he seems to be able to make something happen. When you've got a guy like [Mats Zuccarello] finding him most of the time then you put those two together and they are pretty dangerous anytime they get out there. Can't say enough good things about them and happy for [Kaprizov] on his first career hat trick there. He earned it."
Zuccarello finished the night with three assists as the line of he, Kaprizov and Victor Rask continues to play outstanding hockey.
That was evident on the Wild's first goal of the night almost six minutes into the third.

With Zuccarello and Kaprizov passing the puck all over the zone, Kaprizov decided to spin and shoot from the right circle, banking in a shot off a Coyotes defenseman for a 1-0 lead.
But it was Kaprizov's second goal that has been symbolic of his meteoric rise as a rookie.
Fresh off the bench, Kaprizov hopped the boards, zoomed into the offensive zone, scooped up the puck, circled the net and fired a laser from near the right hash marks. Goaltender Adin Hill didn't have a chance as Kaprizov's shot slipped under the crossbar for a 2-zip lead.

"He doesn't surprise us, right? I'm sure you guys [in the media] aren't getting surprised," said Wild coach Dean Evason. "Every night, there's something. He's a very special hockey player."
It appeared the game was about over after Jonas Brodin's bank shot off the glass went 120 feet into an empty cage, pushing the Wild's lead to three goals with 59 seconds left. But with Hill back in the cage and an offensive zone faceoff, the Zuccarello-Kaprizov connection hit again, as the former set up the latter for a gorgeous one-timer that beat Hill and gave Kaprizov his hat trick in style.

"I mean obviously we all knew. We talked about, 'Let's try and get it for him.' It's always special when a guy can score a hat trick," Zuccarello said. "So yeah obviously we try and get that and we were lucky this time that we were able to make that happen. It was fun for the whole team."
Lost in the madness of the third period was the stellar performance of Talbot, who for two periods, was the only reason Arizona hadn't taken a multi-goal lead.
Playing for the first time in a week, Talbot stopped Phil Kessel on back-to-back breakaways in the first period, then stoned him again on another solo chance in the second.

Talbot was rewarded with a bit of an easier time in the third and finished off his first shutout in a Wild uniform by stopping all 25 shots he faced.
It was a fitting end for Talbot, who saw his shutout spoiled with 2:50 left in regulation in his last start at Xcel Energy Center Feb. 26 against the Los Angeles Kings.
"Our first two periods weren't very clean and he bailed us out a lot there," said Wild defenseman Jared Spurgeon. "He made huge saves to keep it 0-0 and we were able to come out in the third and get some goals and reward him. He's been great even in the games we're leaving him out to dry. It's nice to see him get that shutout."
With Kaapo Kahkonen riding an eight-game winning streak, Talbot admitted he was a bit surprised that he was pencilled in as the starter.
But he made Evason's choice look good.

"It's a tough decision for a coach. I can't really blame them either way," Talbot said. "I obviously want to get back in there, but you understand when you got a guy playing that well. He's won, what, eight in a row now? That's tough to take a guy out.
"There's so many games in such a short sequence here that you're going to have to have both guys going, and I think Dean knows that. I was happy to go out there and reward him with his confidence tonight."
No matter who is in goal, the Wild feels like it has a chance to win each and every night. Even in games where the offense has been slow to find its footing.

But the days of the low-scoring, grind-it-out, hope-for-an-ugly-one Wild seem to be a thing of the past, thanks in part to a kind of player not seen around here in a long time.
"Anytime the puck touches his stick, he can be dangerous and make something out of nothing," Talbot said. "He's got a couple good guys on his line that are really good finding him in open spaces, but he just creates more space for himself where he doesn't need a ton of room. You could see that tonight.
"Anytime he touches the puck, a special play could be coming. It's fun to watch, and I'm happy he's on our side, for sure."
Related:
Postgame Hat Trick: Wild 4, Coyotes 0