Kaprizov's winning puck

The first three matches of the new NHL season for Minnesota were not very successful.

The team did not win a single victory and conceded 20 goals, but Kirill Kaprizov showed excellent form at the same time.

In no other game did he leave the ice without scoring points, and in the reporting meeting with Vancouver (4:3 OT) he was recognized as the first star after he brought his team victory in overtime.

In addition, Kirill scored two assists.

The Wild opened the scoring already in the 5th minute, but quickly lost the advantage, and then were completely forced to recoup.

They managed to do it even before the first break thanks to Kaprizov, who gave a great pass to Sam Steele.

In the second dvadtsatiminutke hosts again allowed the opponent to come forward and for a long time unsuccessfully tried to pick up the keys to the gates of Thatcher Demko.

It was possible to recoup only in the middle of the third period.

Mats Zukkarello with the transfer of Kaprizov converted the majority and restored parity.

Both teams could snatch victory in the remaining time, but the guests were closer to this after the removal of Jonas Brodin.

However, Minnesota persevered in the game in unequal lineups and lived to see overtime.

It was in it that Kaprizov said his weighty word, taking advantage of the fact that the opponent's goalkeeper lost sight of the puck.

“Given that the first three games were very difficult and did not end with a victory, every time you go out on the ice - when you make a lot of mistakes, when you play poorly in your zone, it’s tiring, and every shift seems difficult.

You try, you try, maybe it will get better.

And after the victory, of course, there is no pressure anymore.

Already simpler, ”the striker shared his feelings after the match.

Svechnikov's first hat-trick

An enchanting match was played by Carolina forward Andrey Svechnikov, who scored three goals against Edmonton (4:6).

Unfortunately, this was not enough to win, but nevertheless, Andrei was recognized as the second star of the meeting, after the Oilers forward Connor McDavid, who scored four points.

Each of the heads of the Russian hockey player turned out to be a feast for the eyes.

The first happened at the beginning of the second period, when Svechnikov, having taken possession of the puck on the red line, freely entered the zone in the center and sharply threw it into the far corner.

After 11 minutes, Andrei almost repeated his trick, with the only difference being that this time he broke in on the right flank and surprised Jack Campbell with a low shot.

Well, after the break, the Russian striker sent the puck into the goal in touch after the partners won in a foreign face-off zone.

For Svechnikov, this hat-trick was the first in the NHL regular season, previously he was marked by three goals in one match only in the playoffs. 

Thanks to the current achievement, the Russian, who has six goals, has risen to the first line in the list of the best scorers of the season, which he shares with Tampa forward Steven Stamkos.

In addition, he updated the club record for the number of goals in four opening matches.

Previously, Ron Francis, Jeff Sanderson and Erik Staal had the best performances, each of which differed five times.

The head coach of the Carolinas, Rod Brindamore, after the match, was scattered in compliments to Svechnikov.

According to him, Andrei dominated the ice.

“His line played well, he was very good.

But the rest of them didn’t really show themselves, to be honest.

It wasn't enough - we gave them two goals.

You can't just let yourself score, especially for this team.

In my opinion, this played a decisive role, ”the Canadian specialist emphasized.

The player himself admitted that the joy of the first hat-trick in his career negates the annoyance due to defeat.

“It’s hard that we lost this match.

My teammates created great chances for me and my job is to shoot.

This is what I did today.

I just tried to “shoot” and score, but yes, this is definitely a difficult defeat, ”the official NHL website quotes the hockey player as saying.

Panarin's leadership in the race of scorers and assistants

Rangers striker Artemi Panarin extended his hitting streak to five games.

In the game with San Jose (2:3 OT), he scored an abandoned puck.

Now the Russian has 11 (3 + 8) points, and he continues to lead the lists of the best scorers and assistants in the NHL this season.

In addition, Panarin also repeated the club record for the number of points scored in five opening matches of the championship, which held for more than 50 years.

In the 1971/72 season, Rangers legend Rod Gilbert also scored three goals and made eight assists.

Now he shares this achievement with the Russian.

In addition, over the past 11 years, none of the team's players managed to score points in five meetings in a row.

The last one to have such a bright streak was Brad Richards in the 2011/12 season.

However, neither a spectacular shot from Panarin's sharp angle, nor the selfless game of Rangers goalkeeper Igor Shesterkin, who saved 24 out of 27 shots, helped Gerard Gallan's team defeat the conference outsider.

New Yorkers completely failed the third period, allowing the match to go into overtime.

And there, a mistake in defense led to a goal into an empty net.