ELMONT, N.Y. \u2014 Midway through the third period Friday, Kirill Kaprizov and Mats Zuccarello showed why they can be so magical together.<\/p>\n
Zuccarello picked off a New York Islanders breakout pass in the neutral zone, spun and flipped the puck back to a streaking Kaprizov, who then dropped a between-the-legs, behind-the-back feed to Zuccarello.<\/p>\n
\u201cI knew exactly where it was going,\u201d coach John Hynes said.<\/p>\n
\u201cOnly those two,\u201d Brock Faber said. \u201cOnly those two.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know,\u201d Kaprizov said. \u201cJust instincts, you know?\u201d<\/p>\n
Zuccarello sent it right back to Kaprizov for a one-timer that gave the Minnesota Wild their final goal in an impressive 5-2 victory over the Islanders at UBS Arena. Zuccarello, in his season debut after recovering from surgery on a lower-body injury, picked up where he left off on a top line with Kaprizov and Marco Rossi, who also scored.<\/p>\n
#SportsCenterTop10<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/0cDRD4cGz1<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Minnesota Wild (@mnwild) November 8, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cHim and Kirill are so fun to watch,\u201d Faber said. \u201cThe way they find each other is something I\u2019ve never seen before. It\u2019s fun to have those two back. Kirill is definitely smiling a little more.\u201d<\/p>\n As for how Zuccarello felt, we don\u2019t know, as the veteran winger and leader declined interview requests postgame. He did say on the Wild\u2019s rightsholder broadcast with FanDuel that it was \u201cboring to be in the gym\u201d and fun to be back. His chemistry with Kaprizov has been instant since the Russian superstar arrived.<\/p>\n \u201cIt helps for me that he\u2019s world-class,\u201d Zuccarello said. \u201cWe think a little bit alike on and off the ice. I don\u2019t really have a good answer for you. He wants the puck the whole time, and he wants the puck in good areas. And I\u2019m trying to get rid of it as fast as I can, so maybe that\u2019s good.\u201d<\/p>\n As for how Zuccarello\u2019s presence impacted the entire team, that was easy to see. It wasn\u2019t just Zuccarello\u2019s chemistry with Kaprizov; his presence also made the lineup deeper, which resulted in lines being slotted differently. Each of the four lines was on the ice for a five-on-five goal. Nine Wild players picked up points, including Marcus Foligno\u2019s first of the season. Rookie Danila Yurov, a healthy scratch in the previous three games, had a goal.<\/p>\n \u201cI thought in general it was one of our better team games as well,\u201d Hynes said.<\/p>\n Jesper Wallstedt had admitted his last start \u2014 allowing six goals in an overtime loss to the San Jose Sharks Oct. 26 \u2014 was tough to sit on for a couple of weeks. But Wallstedt played well in his return to action, stopping 25 of 27 shots in helping Minnesota hold on for the win. Wallstedt had some good practices in between and was working with goalie coach Frederic Chabot on things he could improve, and it \u201cpaid off.\u201d<\/p>\n It was Zuccarello, however, who got the player of the game redwoods-themed hat postgame.<\/p>\n \u201cHe knows how he needs to come back,\u201d Kaprizov said. \u201cHe\u2019s smart and can read the game, and we just try to help him today. He\u2019s a smart player; everyone knows this. It\u2019s easy to play with him and hard to play against him.<\/p>\n Said Faber: \u201cHe\u2019s a leader, he\u2019s a guy you want in the locker room when times are great and when times are hard. He brings so much to the team on and off the ice, so having him back was a huge, huge game for us.\u201d<\/p>\n and THE HAT goes to\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/ngQGDVl2c4<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Minnesota Wild (@mnwild) November 8, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n Yurov scores in return<\/p>\n Yurov was put back in the lineup Friday and delivered. The Russian rookie scored his second goal of his NHL career, taking a couple whacks at a rebound through traffic in front. It had to feel good for the Wild\u2019s top forward prospect, who has had his ups and downs in making the transition from the KHL.<\/p>\n When asked what he wants to see from Yurov after his three-game reset, Hynes said, \u201cI\u2019d like to see Danila dig in the faceoff circle. Use his speed and then get back. I think the biggest transition coming from the KHL to North America, particularly the NHL, is less time and space \u2014 competitive battles, whether that\u2019s the net front, 50-50 puck battles, those types of things. To be highly engaged and competitive in those.\u201d<\/p>\n chaos at the net, no issue for Danila pic.twitter.com\/reV6iRS7WK<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Minnesota Wild (@mnwild) November 8, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n And Hynes was impressed with that fourth line with Yakov Trenin, Foligno and Yurov, who had his first goal a few weeks back at Madison Square Garden. \u201cI think he likes New York,\u201d Hynes joked. \u201cI liked that line, three big guys all skating. It was nice to see him get another goal; that always boosts a young player. I like his progression.\u201d<\/p>\n Yurov took the spot of Ben Jones. Tyler Pitlick, who received a match penalty for his ill-advised and dangerous high hit in Thursday\u2019s road game against the Carolina Hurricanes, was also scratched. Pitlick did not receive a hearing or supplemental discipline from the NHL Department of Player Safety, with it likely seeing it as the head wasn\u2019t the main point of contact and that head contact was unavoidable.<\/p>\n Hunt stepping up<\/p>\n It took a month for Daemon Hunt to make his season debut. It might be a little while before he\u2019s taken out of the lineup. Hunt put together a second straight strong game while on the third pair with Zeev Buium, picking up an assist in 16:32 of ice time. That was about seven minutes more than he played on Thursday. Hunt has been taking the spot of David Jiricek, who, coincidentally, was the headliner in last season\u2019s deal with the Columbus Blue Jackets, who got Hunt.<\/p>\n \u201cI think Daemon played two really solid games,\u201d Hynes said. \u201cYou can see the way he skates, and he can move the puck. But I think his skating ability is impactful, whether that\u2019s offensively joining the rush or moving it at the offensive blue line. But it\u2019s the same thing defensively, his gap and gap control, being able to get back on pucks quick, looks good.\u201d<\/p>\n Odds and ends<\/p>\n \u2022 Marcus Johansson, who is expected to play in his 1,000th career game Sunday, extended his career-best points streak to eight games with his first-period assist (five goals, five assists in that stretch)<\/p>\n \u2022 Foligno picked up his first point of the season (in 15 games); amazingly, this was the first goal celebration he had been part of all season.<\/p>\n \u2022 The Wild are now in a 9-for-9 stretch on the PK.<\/p>\n \u2022 Kaprizov\u2019s slick saucer pass to spark a Rossi breakaway goal was one of the best of the year.<\/p>\n What a GORGEOUS pass from Kirill Kaprizov \ud83d\ude32 pic.twitter.com\/t4MnybRbs3<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 NHL (@NHL) November 8, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n