Matt Boldy scored his fifth career hat trick and added an assist as the Minnesota Wild held off the St. Louis Blues 5-4 Thursday night in Saint Paul, Minn.
Kirill Kaprizov scored his third goal in two games and added two assists for the Wild, who have won three of four. Quinn Hughes and Joel Eriksson Ek each had two assists and Jesper Wallstedt made 20 saves.
Kaprizov, who has 11 points (six goals, five assists) during a five-game point streak, headed to the dressing room late in the third period after being pushed into the boards by Hofer.
Robert Thomas had a goal and an assist, and Mason McTavish scored his third goal in two games for the Blues, ending their three-game point streak (2-0-1). Cam Fowler had three assists, and Joel Hofer made 33 saves.
Trailing 5-2, the Blues pulled within 5-3 on Thomas’ short-handed goal at 16:00 of the third period, and Dylan Holloway made it 5-4 with 15 seconds remaining.
Jonatan Berggren gave the Blues a 1-0 lead 1:45 into the game when he received a pass below the goal line, skated into the slot and lifted a backhand shot past Wallstedt on the power play.
Boldy tied it at 7:31 during a 5-on-3 power play, scoring on a one-timer from the high slot off a pass from Hughes, who has an eight-game assist streak.
Danila Yurov put Minnesota ahead 2-1 on a one-timer from the edge of the right circle off a centering pass from Maxim Shabanov on a 3-on-2 rush at 11:17.
McTavish tied it 2-2 at 4:57 of the second period when a lob pass from Pius Suter sent him in alone and he slid the puck through the five hole.
The tie lasted just 27 seconds before Boldy took a pass from Eriksson Ek behind the goal line and beat Hofer with a wrist shot from the right circle at 5:24.
Kaprizov made it 4-2 when he tipped in Hughes’ centering attempt at 8:47.
Boldy completed his hat trick with his fifth goal of the season at 16:47, scoring on a one-timer from the left circle off a pass from Kaprizov in the corner to increase the lead to 5-2.
–Field Level Media
