ST. LOUIS — Filip Gustavsson achieved a rare feat by making 27 saves and scoring an empty-net goal, helping the Minnesota Wild to a decisive 4-1 victory over the St. Louis Blues on Tuesday night. This win allowed the Wild to end a two-game losing streak.

Ryan Hartman opened the scoring for Minnesota with a power-play goal early in the first period, and Jakub Lauko followed up with a short-handed goal during the second period. Marco Rossi capped the scoring with a goal in the third. Kirill Kaprizov was instrumental in the win, notching two assists throughout the game.

The Blues saw some bright spots as Mathieu Joseph, recently acquired from Ottawa, scored his first goal with the team midway through the third period. St. Louis had a strong start to the season but faced a setback, with goalkeeper Jordan Binnington recording 23 saves. This match marked an end to their streak of four consecutive home opener victories.

Takeaways from the game include the Wild achieving a unique distinction; it was the first occasion, since their 5-0 shutout of the New York Islanders on January 15, 2024, that they scored both a power-play and a short-handed goal in the same contest. Conversely, the Blues have found themselves in a challenging position this season, facing a multi-goal deficit in every game so far.

A pivotal moment in the match occurred when Lauko managed to slip behind the Blues’ defense during a power play, increasing the Wild’s lead to 2-0 at 7:52 in the second period. This marked the second short-handed goal allowed by St. Louis this season. Shortly after, a potential goal from Jordan Kyrou was disallowed when officials intervened, believing that Gustavsson had covered the puck. Additionally, Ryan Suter almost got one for the Blues, but a replay showed the puck crossed the line after the second-period buzzer went off.

A noteworthy statistic from the game revealed that Kaprizov had assists on both the Hartman and Rossi goals, bringing his career total against the Blues to 15 points, comprising six goals and nine assists in just 18 games played.

Looking ahead, the Wild will continue their lengthy seven-game road trip with a match against Columbus on Saturday, while the Blues will return home to face the New York Islanders on Thursday night.