Field Level Media
Apr 16, 2021
Minnesota fourth-liner Nick Bonino stayed hot with a goal and an assist in the Wild's 3-2 win Friday night over the San Jose Sharks in Saint Paul, Minn.
Bonino and linemates Zach Parise (goal) and Nico Sturm finished plus-5 as the Wild boosted their record to 20-7-3 since Feb. 18.
Mats Zuccarello scored for the third time in two games, and Cam Talbot (14-6-3) allowed two goals on 22 shots to go to 10-2-2 in his last 14 starts since March 12.
Minnesota moved to 16-4-0 at home -- an .800 winning percentage. The 2006-07 club owns the franchise record with a .768 mark.
San Jose's Tomas Hertl and Evander Kane netted goals, and Martin Jones made 15 saves for the Sharks, who lost their fourth straight and are 3-5-0 in April.
Patrick Marleau skated in his 1,766th career game -- one short of tying Hall of Famer Gordie Howe for the most games played in NHL history.
In the first of back-to-back games in Minnesota, the Sharks went up 1-0 when Hertl sailed through the neutral zone, banked a pass to himself off the side boards and snapped home his 13th from the left dot 3:32 into the teams' sixth meeting.
The Wild started sluggishly -- outshot 6-1 over nine minutes into the first -- and did not produce much until a San Jose miscue near Jones led to a free puck that Bonino whacked from the high slot.
The shot fluttered by Jones and found the twine to even the score at 1-1 at 9:30. Unassisted on the tally, Bonino scored for the sixth time.
In the second, Minnesota went up 2-1 after a faceoff win by Victor Rask, who kicked the puck over to Zuccarello for his ninth marker at 2:15.
Just 65 seconds later, the fourth line was at it as Parise started a play by banking a pass in the offensive zone back to Bonino, who posted a marker and two helpers in Wednesday's 5-2 victory over visiting Arizona. Parise swooped around the net and chipped in his sixth goal off a pass wide of Jones from Matt Dumba.
Kane stole a puck in San Jose's defensive end and raced in for a short-handed goal to cut it to 3-2 at 13:43 of the third, but Minnesota held on for the win.
--Field Level Media