Wild Rally Past Bruins, 4-1, in DiPietro's Return
After the thrill of the overtime win in Winnipeg on Friday, Saturday night in St. Paul brought us back down to earth. The Minnesota Wild scored four straight goals to beat the Bruins 4-1, handing Boston its first loss of the season. The Black and Gold are now 2-1-0.
Second night of a back-to-back, on the road, in a team's home opener. These things happen. But there's still plenty to talk about.
Jeannot gets us going
The Bruins came out with energy. Just 1:53 into the game, Tanner Jeannot scored from low in the left face-off circle, set up by Mark Kastelic and Connor Clifton. Early lead, crowd quiet, good vibes. Boston carried that 1-0 lead through the first period and into the second.
The penalty trouble
And that's where it got away from us. The Bruins took three penalties in the second period, and the Wild made them pay. Kirill Kaprizov tied it 1-1 on the power play at 6:11, one-timing a short feed from right in front.
Later in the period, Minnesota got nearly two full minutes of 5-on-3 time. Boston almost killed it off. Almost. With one second left on the second penalty, Quinn Hughes shot through traffic to give the Wild a 2-1 lead at 12:28. One second. That one stung.
The third period push
Jared Spurgeon made it 3-1 at 3:24 of the third with a wrist shot off the rush, and Kaprizov added an empty-netter late. But give the Bruins credit, they didn't fold. Boston outshot Minnesota 13-9 in the third period and kept pushing. Jesper Wallstedt just had an answer every time, finishing with 26 saves.
A big night for DiPietro
Here's a story worth celebrating no matter the score. Michael DiPietro got the start in goal, and it was his first NHL start since January 2022. Think about that: more than four years between starts. He made 26 saves and gave the Bruins a chance on a night when the penalty kill let him down. We love seeing a guy get his moment after that kind of wait, and he deserved a better result.
No need to panic
Look, nobody likes losing. But this one came on the second night of a back-to-back, on the road, against a team riding the energy of its home opener. The Bruins had played an emotional overtime game the night before. Some nights the legs just aren't quite there, and that's okay.
Our takeaways
Stay out of the box. Three penalties in one period and two power-play goals against was the whole story. The effort was there. Outshooting the Wild in the third shows this team doesn't quit. Good on DiPietro. A solid night from the backup is a great sign for a long season.
One loss in October doesn't define anything, B's fans. Ottawa is up next on Monday back home at the Garden. Let's get back in the win column. 🐻