Minnesota Wild Defense: Wallstedt Stops 26 Shots in 5-1 Win

Jesper Wallstedt stopped 26 shots on Sunday, November 1, helping the Minnesota Wild defeat the Washington Capitals 5-1 at Capital One Arena. The victory improves Wallstedt’s record to 9 wins, 2 losses, and 3 overtime losses this season. It marks the fourth straight road win for Minnesota.

Quinn Hughes and Michael McCarron scored early in the first period to give the Wild a 2-0 lead. The goals came just 1 minute and 45 seconds apart. Before the end of the first period, Washington goalie Logan Thompson made a toe save on a backhander from Kirill Kaprizov that appeared destined for the net.

The Capitals increased their pressure in the second period, outshooting the Wild and keeping Wallstedt busy. A deflected shot slipped past the Minnesota goalie with less than five seconds remaining in the period, giving Washington some breathing room before the intermission.

Maxim Shabanov and Danila Yurov added insurance goals on late power plays in the third period. Kirill Kaprizov finished the game with an empty-netter, his 15th goal of the season and the 500th point of his career.

Wild coach John Hynes noted that Washington is a big, strong team that creates traffic around the net. He said the Capitals had good looks, but Wallstedt made big saves. Wallstedt himself said the team stuck to its game plan despite the Capitals throwing pucks on net from various angles.

This performance follows a strong start to November for Wallstedt. Last year at this time, the then-rookie goalie went 6-0-0 with three shutouts as Minnesota turned its season around. This season, he has played all but two games for the Wild.

Logan Thompson finished with 24 saves for Washington. The Capitals will make their only visit to St. Paul this season on March 7. The Wild’s next game is against the Philadelphia Flyers on Election Night.