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With veterans out, fourth line sends Wild past Ottawa, 3-2

John Shipley, Pioneer Press
·4 min read

With Ryan Hartman suspended and Marcus Foligno lost for the season, the Wild were in dire need of some supplemental scoring on Tuesday. The fourth line stepped up.

Matt Boldy got the top line on the board early in the second period, but fourth-line grinders Mason Shaw and Vinni Lettieri scored big goals for the Wild in their 3-2 victory over the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday at Xcel Energy Center.

Shaw, recalled from the American Hockey League on Feb. 16 after recovering from his fourth anterior cruciate ligament tear, opened the scoring with an even-strength goal in the first period, and Lettieri broke a 2-2 tie with 6:56 remaining in regulation.

Lettieri scored his first goal since Dec. 18, and Shaw scored his first goal since March 21, 2023. Eleven days later, he tore up his right knee in a 4-1 loss in Las Vegas.

“I’ve thought about it quite a bit in the last week,” Shaw said. “I mean, for it to be, what 366 (days) today? That one felt good, and I’m in a lot better spirits this time than I was a year ago today. Just really happy. Obviously getting a win makes everything feel better, and something I look back on really proud of what it took to get to this point.”

Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 30 shots, including a short-handed breakaway by Ridley Greig minutes before Lettieri broke the tie, as Minnesota pulled within six points of Los Angeles for the Western Conference’s second wild card spot pending the Kings’ game against Seattle on Wednesday.

“We got the two points,” said defenseman Zack Bogosian, whose cross-ice pass resulted in Shaw’s goal. “Obviously, it wasn’t our prettiest, but you know, this time of year even when you’re getting a win, that’s huge. (We) found a way to win.”

Hartman on Monday received a three-game, unpaid suspension for throwing his stick on the ice after last Saturday’s 2-1 overtime loss to Vegas, and Foligno had season-ending surgery on Tuesday to repair his core muscles. Those are big blows for a team holding onto postseason hopes with what are now eight regular-season games remaining.

But for one night at least, the fourth line — which lost anchors Connor Dewar and Brandon Duhaime at the trade deadline — was the difference offensively.

“That’s how you win games is you gotta have a team that can compete in all areas but obviously tonight the biggest difference was the secondary scoring,” coach John Hynes said.

Shaw helped create the go-ahead goal when he chased down a loose puck in the Ottawa zone and sent it toward the net. The puck hit a Senator’s stick but found its way to the slot, where Lettieri was waiting. He corralled it and scored on a no-look back-hander at 13:04.

Jake Lucchini started the first scoring chance when he won a defensive battle on the wall in the Wild’s end. Shaw recovered the puck and, skating north, passed to Bogosian, who was racing down the right boards. Quickly, the Wild had a 3 on 2 with Lettieri in the center.

With Shaw racing to the corner of the crease, Bogosian sent a pass across the circles that bounced over Lettieri’s stick right to Shaw — who one-timed it past Korpisalo into the far corner for a 1-0 lead at 12:32 of the first period.

“Bogo must have had a little marinara sauce on there,” Lettieri said. “It was great. It was an awesome pass, right on the tape — and Shawsie made no mistake.”

The Wild quickly added to that lead in the second period when Kirill Kaprizov centered a pass into the slot, whence Boldy swept the puck past Korpisalo for a 2-0 lead just 49 seconds into the period.

Boldy scored 49 seconds into the second period for a 2-0 lead, but it seemed to wake up the Senators, who dominated the rest of the period, scoring on power-play goals by Drake Batherson and Jakob Chychrun.

But Shaw helped set up the go-ahead goal when he chased down a loose puck to keep alive a rush in the Senators’ zone, getting just enough on it to center it, even after hitting an Ottawa players’ stick.

It found Lettieri between the circles, and the veteran wing sent a blind back-hander underneath Joonas Korpisalo to make it 3-2 at 13:04. Although Shaw got the puck to his linemate, Lettieri was credited with an unassisted goal.

“I knew where I was putting it, but I was very lucky that (the puck) got to me the way it did,” Lettieri said. “I didn’t really have too much time, just tried to beat the goalie quick underneath his blocker.”

The Wild have two more games at home this week, starting Thursday against Colorado, before starting a five-game road trip at Chicago on Sunday.

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