Wild win old-school battle against Red Wings
In a game filled with bloopers, fights, and blood, the Minnesota Wild held on to defeat the Detroit Red Wings 6-5 on Thursday night.
Matt Boldy got the Wild off to a fast start when he scored his 10th goal of the season 1:37 seconds into the game. The Red Wings answered quickly when Jakub Vrana tied the game later in the first period. But the Wild jumped back on top after Alex Nedeljkovic fanned on a clearing attempt, allowing the puck to go into the back of his own net.
Nedeljkovic's gaffe gave Joel Eriksson Ek his 18th goal of the season but Minnesota's lead didn't last long. Lucas Raymond and Vrana scored before the end of the period to give Detroit a 3-2 lead heading into the intermission. The Red Wings piled on in the second when Raymond's second goal of the night made it 4-2.
But the Wild mounted a comeback after Mats Zuccarello's power play goal made it 4-3. Minnesota appeared to tie the game later in the second period when Marcus Foligno threw a puck past Nedeljkovic but the goal was overturned via review to keep Detroit on top.
Things escalated toward the end of the period when both teams engaged in a bloody brawl. After Dumba smacked Raymond's head on the back of the ice and Cam Talbot left the crease to join the fray, both teams went to the locker room.
But cooler heads didn't prevail for long. After Matt Boldy tied the game with his second goal of the night, the intensity from both teams rose down the stretch. Eventually, Kirill Kaprizov delivered the go-ahead goal with 7:46 remaining to put Minnesota back on top.
The Wild held onto the lead late into the third but Jordan Oesterle scored on a wraparound to tie the game for Detroit. The game eventually went to a shootout where Mats Zuccarello scored on the Wild's first attempt.
After Dylan Larkin hit the post for Detroit, Kevin Fiala scored the game-winner, flipping the puck past Nedeljkovic to give Minnesota the victory.
The Wild will have little time to celebrate the win as they'll travel to Columbus on Friday night.
