Wild 4-2 Lightning (Oct. 24, 2024) Game Recap

TAMPA, Fla. – Matt Boldy tied it 54 seconds into the third period and the Minnesota Wild remained undefeated in regulation, defeating the Tampa Bay Lightning 4-2 on Thursday night.

Minnesota improved to 5-0-2. Marc-Andre Fleury made 23 saves for his first win of the season and the 562nd of his career.

Boldy's power play goal gave Minnesota a 3-2 lead. Kirill Kaprizov scored two goals, the second into an empty net, and Joel Eriksson Ek had a goal.

Brandon Hagel and Nikita Kucherov scored for Tampa Bay in the second period. The Lightning lost for the first time in four home games.

Andrei Vasilevskiy finished with 14 saves in his third straight loss.

Kaprizov gave the Wild a 1-0 lead at 6:23 of the first period. Tampa Bay rallied with goals from Hagel and Kucherov with 2:36 left in the second period. Eriksson Ek equalized late in the second half.

Takeaways

The Wild's streak of staying behind in regulation ended at 391-31 as Kucherov gave the Lightning a 2-1 lead. It is the second longest streak since the start of the season in NHL history; The 1969-70 Boston Bruins didn't trail in the first 457-21.

Kucherov leads the NHL with eight goals. He has points in each of the Lightning's first seven games.

Key moment

Boldy scored 21 seconds after Nick Paul's unnecessary high-stick penalty gave the Wild their fourth power play.

Important statistics

The Wild have scored first in each of their seven games. They outscored their opponents 8-1 in the first period.

Tampa Bay, which had the NHL's best power play last season, was 0-for-1 entering Thursday and is 0-for-8 with the extra man in its four home games.

Next

The Wild continue their seven-game trip Saturday in Philadelphia. The Lightning host Washington on Saturday evening.

—— AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl