Wild vs. Blue Jackets: Kirill Kaprizov Becomes the Fastest to 10 Goals in Wild History

Nine team games. Ten goals. Kirill Kaprizov is not easing into this season; he is speedrunning it.

The Minnesota Wild star broke a second-period tie with his NHL-leading 10th goal, Jesper Wallstedt made 14 saves, and the Wild beat the Columbus Blue Jackets 2-1 at Grand Casino Arena on Sunday. Minnesota stayed perfect at home, and Kaprizov became the fastest player in franchise history to reach double digits in goals.

Two Goalies, One Long 5-on-3, and a Late Flurry

This one opened like a goalie clinic. Wallstedt stoned Conor Garland on a breakaway about two minutes in, according to the AP. Moments later, Garland and Charlie Coyle took minors eight seconds apart, handing Minnesota a two-man advantage that lasted 1:52. Cam Talbot made three saves during the kill, and Columbus escaped without a scratch.

The scoreless stretch held until the final two minutes of the first period, when the game suddenly got loud. Yakov Trenin pounced on a giveaway at the Columbus line, slipped past a defender and fed Danila Yurov across the slot, and Yurov finished the odd-man rush at 18:12 for his fourth goal in nine games.

Wild coach John Hynes sees a lot more coming from the center. "He's going to be a top-two line center the way that he thinks the game, sees the game," Hynes said.

Columbus answered exactly one minute later. With Columbus skating 6-on-5 on a delayed Minnesota penalty, Adam Fantilli let a shot go from the top of the left circle and beat Wallstedt through traffic at 19:12. Zach Werenski and Sean Monahan assisted, and the teams went to the room tied 1-1.

The Turning Point: Mateychuk's Stick, Kaprizov's Finish

Denton Mateychuk's high stick on Blake Coleman at 1:50 of the second put the Wild back on the power play, and that unit has been a problem for opponents all season. It took 76 seconds.

Maxim Shabanov and Joel Eriksson Ek moved the puck to Kaprizov low in the left circle, and he picked the short side, ripping a shot from a tough angle over Talbot's shoulder at 3:06. That was the game. The assist was the 200th of Eriksson Ek's career, per NHL.com.

Talbot owned it afterward. "I think I gave him a little bit too much," he said. "He put it in a great spot."

The rest of the night belonged to Minnesota's defensive structure. Columbus did not score again, and Wallstedt barely had to break a sweat the rest of the way.

Kaprizov's Record Pace and Wallstedt's Quiet Night

Kirill Kaprizov now has 10 goals through Minnesota's first nine games. NHL.com noted he beat Brian Rolston's franchise mark of 12 games, set in 2006-07, and became the sixth active player to reach 10 goals in nine games or fewer in a season, joining Auston Matthews, Alex Ovechkin, David Pastrnak, Nikita Kucherov and Sidney Crosby. He has also stretched his point streak to six games, with seven goals and five assists in that span. NHL.com added that he has factored on a game-winning goal 78 times in his career, passing Marian Gaborik for third in franchise history.

His explanation was refreshingly simple. "Just playing, play games, and just feel good," Kaprizov said.

Jesper Wallstedt stopped 14 of 15 shots and picked up his sixth win of the season. The shot total says he was not busy. The breakaway stop on Garland says he was sharp when it counted. "Felt like we controlled a lot of the game," Wallstedt said. "We knew they were coming off a back-to-back."

Cam Talbot made 33 saves and was the only reason this stayed a one-goal game. Fantilli put it plainly. "We didn't get enough shots. 'Talbs' stood on his head tonight," he said.

Danila Yurov scored his fourth goal of the season and won six of nine faceoffs in 14:57, quietly giving Hynes more evidence for that top-two center projection. Trenin's setup on the goal was the kind of hustle play that never shows up in fantasy leagues but wins games in October.

Matt Boldy did not score, but his game-high six shots pushed his season total to 41, which NHL.com said ranks second in the league.

Stats That Matter

• Shots: Minnesota 35, Columbus 15. That is not a typo, and it is the clearest sign of how much the Wild controlled play.
• Power play: Minnesota went 1-for-4, and NHL.com said the Wild have now scored a power-play goal in eight of nine games, going 9-for-28 for a 32.1 percent rate that ranks second in the NHL.
• Hits: Columbus led 29-16, which looks a lot like a team chasing the puck all night.
• Zach Werenski played 28:43 for Columbus and assisted on the only goal.
• Kaprizov has scored in each of his past four games against Columbus, per NHL.com.

What It Means

Minnesota improves to 6-2-1 with 13 points, leads the Central Division according to the AP, and is 4-0-0 at home. It is the Wild's fourth win in five games, and it sets them up nicely for a five-game road trip that starts Tuesday in Edmonton.

Columbus falls to 3-4-0 and has lost three of its past four. The Blue Jackets were on the second night of a back-to-back after a 1-0 win over the Rangers on Saturday, and it showed in the shot count. Coach Rick Bowness was not questioning the work rate. "The execution wasn't there," he said. "Was the effort there? Yes, it was. We worked very hard." Fantilli added that the Blue Jackets were "putting pucks in guys' feet," which is about as honest a self-scouting report as you will get. Columbus hosts Toronto on Tuesday.

Closing Take

There is a scene in every superhero origin movie where the hero realizes the powers are real and starts showing off. Kaprizov said it took him a few games to feel like himself this season. If this is him just warming up, the rest of the league should be nervous. Reaching 10 goals in nine games or fewer puts him on a list with Matthews, Ovechkin, Pastrnak, Kucherov and Crosby, and the Wild are winning because of it.

Stats from the official box score via ESPN. Postgame quotes and notes from NHL.com; additional reporting from the Associated Press.