National Hockey League
Minnesota 3, Montreal 0
When: 8:00 PM ET, Thursday, November 14, 2024
Where: Xcel Energy Center, Saint Paul, Minnesota
Referees: Tom Chmielewski, Brian Pochmara
Linesmen: Kyle Flemington, Trent Knorr
Attendance: 17012

Filip Gustavsson stopped all 19 shots he faced, and the Minnesota Wild pulled away for a 3-0 win over the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday night in St. Paul, Minn.

Gustavsson made two saves in the first period, seven saves in the second period and 10 saves in the third period to lift Minnesota. Matt Boldy, Marco Rossi and Kirill Kaprizov each scored for the Wild, who have won three of their past four games.

Montreal was shut out for the first time this season.

Canadiens goaltender Sam Montembeault took a hard-luck loss despite turning aside 25 of 27 shots. He dropped to 4-8-1 this season.

The game remained scoreless until midway through the second period, when the Wild finally broke through with an even-strength goal.

Kaprizov carried the puck behind the net and into the right circle, where he spun and zipped a pass to Marcus Johansson near the left side of the crease. Johansson quickly redirected a pass to Boldy, who punched in a shot for his 10th goal of the season.

The sequence gave Boldy goals in back-to-back games. He has scored four goals in his past four games and already has notched four seasons in a row with double-digit goals.

Rossi gave the Wild a 2-0 lead on the power play with 7:41 remaining in the third period. He took a pass from Jared Spurgeon and ripped a wrist shot into the net for his fifth goal.

Spurgeon helped to set up the power play that led to Minnesota's second goal. He broke up a three-on-two rush by Montreal and drew a high stick from Canadiens defenseman Jayden Struble to give the Wild a four-minute man advantage.

Kaprizov added an empty-net goal with 20 seconds left to cap the scoring.

Wild defenseman Brock Faber played in his 100th career game. The 22-year-old from suburban Minneapolis finished as the runner-up last season to the Chicago Blackhawks' Connor Bedard for the Calder Trophy as the NHL's top rookie.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
 
Montreal   Minnesota
N/A Points Kirill Kaprizov 2
N/A Goals Kirill Kaprizov 1
N/A Assists Kirill Kaprizov 1
N/A Power Play Goals Marco Rossi 1
N/A Short Handed Goals N/A
Sam Montembeault .926 Save Percentage Filip Gustavsson 1.000
Sam Montembeault 25 Saves Filip Gustavsson 19
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
Montreal 19 0 0-3 2-3 8 27
Minnesota 28 3 1-3 3-3 8 23
Upcoming Games
  • Minnesota will play their next game at home against Dallas. The Wild have a W/L % of .636 after a win and .800 after a loss.
  • Montreal will play their next game at home against Columbus. The Canadiens have a W/L % of .200 after a win and .333 after a loss.