Kaprizov scores twice as Minnesota Wild beat Boston Bruins 4-1 in home opener

By Vancouver Television Sports Desk

Kirill Kaprizov scored twice and Quinn Hughes finished with a goal and an assist as the Minnesota Wild defeated the Boston Bruins 4-1 on Saturday at Grand Casino Arena in St. Paul, Minn. Minnesota scored four unanswered goals after falling behind early to secure its second straight win and improve to 2-0-0 in the early season.

Boston drew first blood 1:53 into the first period when Tanner Jeannot scored from low in the left face-off circle. The Bruins then saw their lead erased as the Wild levelled the game in the second period on a power play.

Kaprizov tied the game 1-1 at 6:11 of the second period with a power-play goal. He scored in front with a one-timer off a short feed from Maxim Shabanov, who earned his first assist and point with the Wild on the play.

The Wild took the lead later in the second period, using a extended special-teams sequence. With 1:52 of 5-on-3 power-play time earlier in the period, Hughes then shot through traffic to give Minnesota a 2-1 advantage at 12:28, with the scoring described as coming with one second remaining on the second minor.

Minnesota stretched its advantage in the third period. Jared Spurgeon pushed the lead to 3-1 at 3:24 with a wrist shot from the top of the right circle on the rush, and Kaprizov added an empty-net goal with 1:01 remaining to seal the 4-1 final.

Jesper Wallstedt made 26 saves for the Wild to support the victory in their home opener. Boston received a 26-save performance from Michael DiPietro, who made his third NHL start and first appearance since Jan. 23, 2022, when he was with the Vancouver Canucks.

The Bruins had started a different goaltender in their previous game, with Jeremy Swayman playing in goal on Friday during Boston’s 4-3 overtime win at the Winnipeg Jets. Against Minnesota on Saturday, DiPietro’s start was the first time he had appeared since his earlier NHL stint, according to the game recap.