Kaprizov scores 200th point in 167th game, shattering Wild record
Besides being phenoms in the NHL, what else does Kirill Kaprizov have in common with Sidney Crosby, Alex Ovechkin and Evgeni Malkin?
They are the only players to tally their first 200 points in 167 games or less since 2000-01, exclusive company Kaprizov joined Sunday when he racked up three points in the Wild's 4-2 takedown of the Senators at Xcel Energy Center.
"It's my job to go out there and play and do the best that I can," Kaprizov said in Russian through an interpreter.
By notching No. 200 in his 167th contest, Kaprizov also became the fastest to 200 in Wild history — and the only one to hit that milestone in under 200 games.
He is the 23rd player all-time to reach 200 points in 167 or fewer games, just behind the likes of Malkin (166), Ovechkin (165) and Crosby (142). The 25-year-old is also the fifth-quickest left winger to get to the 200-point plateau.
"He's different than some of these other superstar guys in the league where they're kind of just waiting for power plays to get their chances," Ryan Hartman said of Kaprizov, who is up to 201 points not even 2½ seasons into his NHL career. "He battles. He's in every battle. He's working — he's the hardest worker out there. He plays a really good all-around game."
Six in a row
Filip Gustavsson kept his win streak going, stopping 26 shots in his career-high sixth consecutive victory during his first season as the Wild's backup goaltender.
Since this surge started on Nov. 19, Gustavsson has a league-best 1.48 goals-against average and sits second in save percentage (.945) among goalies who've logged at least five games.
Only Devan Dubnyk, Kaapo Kahkonen, Niklas Backstrom and Cam Talbot have posted longer win streaks in team history.
Each of the Wild's first two goals against Ottawa came after clutch saves by Gustavsson.
"It's just how hockey goes sometimes," said Gustavsson, who was facing the Senators for the first time since they traded him to the Wild for Talbot in the offseason. "They have the pressure and got some great looks, and then we take the momentum away right away by scoring a nice goal. It's great to feed off their chances."
Hartman returns
After missing 21 games, Hartman was back in action for the Wild.
Hartman skated 12 minutes, 10 seconds and put three shots on net in his first appearance since Oct. 30 when he was punched on the top of the shoulder while his arm was extended in a fight with Chicago's Jarred Tinordi — what Hartman described as a preventable injury.
"Played his gritty game," coach Dean Evason said of Hartman's return. "We didn't really like his [interference] penalty, but we talk a lot about his edge. He was real good on the wall and got pucks out and made plays and was defensively sound and had some looks offensively, as well."
Family connection
The Wild's next game on Wednesday at Anaheim could be a clash between siblings.
Joel Eriksson Ek's brother Olle is currently backing up the Ducks after a rash of injuries to the team's goaltenders.
"If he's still there, it would be awesome," Eriksson Ek said. "He worked hard for it. If he's still up there, it's for sure going to be something special."
Olle, 23, has played mostly for Anaheim's American Hockey League affiliate in San Diego in recent seasons. Last All-Star break, Eriksson Ek, 25, and teammate Jonas Brodin visited Olle in San Diego.
"The youngest usually played goalie," Eriksson Ek said. "We played so much street hockey, hockey overall. We had a lot of competitions when we were younger."
Evason also said the Wild will probably call up an extra forward before the road trip.
