MINNESOTA WILD NOTES:
SERIES NOTES
WASHINGTON CAPITALS
All-Time Wild Record: 14-13-2 (9-5-1 at Xcel Energy Center, 5-8-1 at Washington) 2022-23: Minnesota swept the season series for the second consecutive season…The Wild earned a 4-2 win at Capital One Arena (1/17) and a 5-3 win at Xcel Energy Center (3/19) behind RW Matt Boldy’s second career hat trick… Boldy led the Wild with three goals…C Connor Dewar (0-2=2), C Joel Eriksson Ek (1-1=2), C Frederick Gaudreau (0-2=2), LW Marcus Johansson (0-2=2), RW Ryan Reaves (1-1=2) and D Jared Spurgeon (2-0=2) tallied two points each…G Filip Gustavsson made 34 saves in the first meeting…G Marc-Andre-Fleury made 33 saves in the second contest…LW Alex Ovechkin led the Capitals with five points (2-3=5)…C Dylan Stromme recorded three points (2-1=3)…D Martin Fehervary (1-1=2) and RW Tom Wilson (0-2=2) had two points each…G Charlie Lindgren went 0-2-0 with a 4.22 GAA and a .869 SV% in two starts.
WILD LEADERS: D Alex Goligoski owns 11 points (1-10=11) in 25 games against Washington…RW Mats Zuccarello has 11 points (3-8=11) in 28 contests…LW Marcus Foligno owns nine points (3-6=9) in 23 games…LW Pat Maroon has nine points (5-4=9) in 19 contests.
WILD GOALIES: Fleuryis 27-14-2 with a 2.66 GAA, a .911 SV% and four shutouts in 45 games (44 starts) against Washington…Gustavsson is 1-0-0 with a 2.97 GAA and a .902 SV% in two games (one start).
CAPITALS LEADERS: Ovechkin leads Washington with 36 points (19-17=36) in 21 games against Minnesota…RW T.J. Oshie has 23 points (11-12=23) in 33 contests…C Nicklas Backstrom owns 20 points (2-18=20) in 20 matches…LW Max Pacioretty has 20 points (11-9=20) in 24 contests.
CAPITALS GOALIES: G Darcy Kuemper is 3-5-1 with a 2.89 GAA, a .902 SV% and one shutout in 10 career starts against Minnesota…Lindgren is 0-3-0 with a 3.49 GAA and a .895 SV% in three career starts.
FAST FACTS: Minnesota’s series sweep in 2022-23 marked the third time in franchise history the Wild has won two games against Washington in the same season (2002-03, 2021-22)…The Wild’s three-game road winning streak is the longest in team history vs. the Capitals…Seven of Minnesota’s 14 games played at Washington have been decided by one goal (3-3-1)…Ovechkin netted three PPG on March 28, 2017, the most ever by a Wild opponent.
INJURIES
Matt Boldy: upper body
Freddy Gaudreau: upper body
Alex Goligoski: lower body
Jared Spurgeon: upper body
RECENT TRANSACTIONS
October 15 – October 25, 2023
10/25/23 Recalled F Jujhar Khaira from Iowa and placed D Jared Spurgeon on long-term injured reserve
ON THE ROAD AGAIN
• Minnesota recorded an 11-game road point streak (8-0-3) from 2/23/23 to 3/29/23, third-longest in franchise history and third-longest in the NHL during the 2022-23 season.
• From Feb. 23 through the end of the 2022-23 season, the Wild was first in the NHL with a .927 road SV% and was third with a 2.53 road GAA.
ON THE POWER PLAY • Minnesota set the single-season franchise record for power-play percentage (21.4 pct), converting 54 for 252 power-play opportunities during the 2022-23 campaign.
• The Wild converted 26.2 percent (33 of 126) of power-play opportunities at home this season, sixth-best in the NHL last season.
PENALTY KILLERS
• The Wild recorded a streak of 27 consecutive successful penalty kills across 14 total games from 2/6/23 to 3/2/23. Did not allow a powerplay goal in 12 consecutive games from 2/8/23 – 2/28/23, the longest streak in the NHL this season, tied for the longest streak in franchise history and tied for the 13th-longest streak in the NHL’s Expansion Era (since 1967-68 season).
• Allowed 20 opposing power-play goals on 118 opportunities (83.1 pct.) at home during the 2022-23 season, the seventh-best rate in the NHL.
SHORT (HANDED) KINGS
• The Wild scored two shorthanded goals on the same first-period penalty kill at MTL (10/17), first from Brandon Duhaime at 9:20 and second from Connor Dewar at 9:45, marking the second time in franchise history scoring multiple SHGs on the same penalty kill, the third time in franchise history scoring two SHGs in the same period, and the sixth time in franchise history scoring multiple SHGs in a single game.
• Minnesota currently ranks tied for fourth in the NHL with two shorthanded goals this season.
• Minnesota ranked third in the NHL with 14 shorthanded goals (SHG) during the 2022-23 season.
• The Wild scored its 14th SHG of the season at CHI (4/10), breaking the franchise’s previous single-season record set in the 2000-01 season.
• Minnesota recorded two SHG in a single game twice a 10-day span (3/29 at COL, 4/8 vs. STL) after doing so only three times previously in franchise history
WASHINGTON CAPITALS NOTES:
LAST GAME Washington 6, New Jersey 4 October 25, 2023 *Prudential Center* Newark, NJ Shots: WSH: 25; NJD: 22 Power Plays: WSH: 1/3; NJD: 0/1 Three Stars: 1. Strome (WSH), 2. Toffoli (NJD), 3. Hughes (NJD)
RECENT TRANSACTIONS
Recalled goaltender Hunter Shepard from AHL Hershey and loaned goaltender Clay Stevenson to AHL Hershey, 10/24
INJURIES/ILLNESSES
Nic Dowd: 10/18-10/25 (4 games) Charlie Lindgren: 10/16-10/25 (5 games) Max Pacioretty: 10/13-10/25 (6 games) Joel Edmundson: 10/13-10/25 (6 games) Man Games Lost: 21
UPCOMING SCHEDULE
Oct. 29, 5 p.m. ET vs. San Jose (MNMT, 106.7 The Fan/Caps Radio 24/7)
Nov. 2, 7 p.m. ET vs. New York Islanders (MNMT, 106.7 The Fan/Caps Radio 24/7)
Nov. 4, 7 p.m. ET vs. Columbus (MNMT, 106.7 The Fan/Caps Radio 24/7)
Nov. 8, 7:30 p.m. ET vs. Florida (TNT, 106.7 The Fan/Caps Radio 24/7)
Nov. 10, 7 p.m. ET at New Jersey (MNMT2, 106.7 The Fan/Caps Radio 24/7)
TONIGHT’S GAME
The Capitals host the Minnesota Wild on Friday at Capital One Arena for the first of two meetings between the teams this season. The Capitals and Wild will complete their season series on Jan. 23 in St. Paul. Washington is 15-12-0-2 all-time versus Minnesota and 9-5-1 in their last 15 games against the Wild dating back to the 2014-15 season. In 2022-23, Washington dropped the season series with Minnesota 0-2-0. Alex Ovechkin (2g, 3a) led the Capitals with five points in two games against the Wild last season.
HOME vs. MINNESOTA WILD
(All-time) Record Goals For Goals Against Streak 9-5-0-0 34 28 3 MIN wins (3/22/19-1/17/23)
CAPITALS vs. MINNESOTA WILD
(Career Totals) Games Goals Assists Points Oshie (33) Ovechkin (19) Backstrom (18) Ovechkin (36) Ovechkin (21) Oshie (11) Ovechkin (17) Oshie (23) Backstrom (20) Kuznetsov/Wilson/Mantha (4) Oshie (12) Backstrom (20)
TOP CAPS FACTS
Running Wild – Alex Ovechkin has recorded 36 points (19g, 17a) in 21 career games against Minnesota (1.71 P/GP), including three points (2g, 1a) in the teams’ last meeting on March 19 in St. Paul. – Ovechkin’s 0.90 goals per game and 1.71 points per game versus the Wild are the highest rates he has recorded against a single franchise in his career. – Ovechkin has scored 27 goals in 45 career regular-season games against Marc-Andre Fleury, the most goals he has scored against a single goaltender in his career and has scored two goals in two career games against Filip Gustavsson.
