Wild shut out Mammoth out 5-0 behind Filip Gustavsson's 25 saves

Sarah McLellan, The Minnesota Star Tribune on Mar 10, 2026

Published in Hockey

By clicking submit, I authorize Arcamax and its affiliates to: (1) use, sell, and share my information for marketing purposes, including cross-context behavioral advertising, as described in our Privacy Policy , (2) add to information that I provide with other information like interests inferred from web page views, or data lawfully obtained from data brokers, such as past purchase or location data, or publicly available data, (3) contact me or enable others to contact me by email or other means with offers for different types of goods and services, and (4) retain my information while I am engaging with marketing messages that I receive and for a reasonable amount of time thereafter. I understand I can opt out at any time through an email that I receive, or by clicking here

ST. PAUL, Minn. — Karel Vejmelka shook his head.

The Utah Mammoth goalie stopped Kirill Kaprizov not once but twice from point-blank range, unfurling his glove for the first save and then sliding across in time to block the second shot from Kaprizov.

But Vejmelka couldn’t deny Kaprizov forever … and it was another miss that helped Kaprizov finally score.

After sending the puck wide, Kaprizov was first to the rebound off the boards and wired it by Vejmelka from one knee for his latest highlight-reel goal. That set the tone for the Minnesota Wild's 5-0 romp over the Mammoth Tuesday at Grand Casino Arena.

Matt Boldy polished off a 2-on-1 pass with a booming shot, and Bobby Brink christened his home debut with a snappy wrister for his first goal since he was traded to the Wild from Philadelphia last week. Earlier in the game, Brink crashed face-first into the boards from a hit by former Gophers center Logan Cooley in the first period and left the game briefly before returning.

Danila Yurov flexed his strength on an impressive individual effort for his ninth goal of the season, and Ryan Hartman wrapped up the rout by whacking in a puck from Nick Foligno.

Filip Gustavsson made 25 saves for his fourth shutout of the season and the 15th of his career, and the Wild avoided getting swept this season by Utah; since the franchise relocated from Arizona to Salt Lake City, the Mammoth have won five of the seven matchups, and this was their first loss in St. Paul in their fourth trip.

How it happened

Cooley wasn’t penalized for the play on Brink, but the aftermath did lead to a Wild power play.

Lawson Crouse was sent to the penalty box for a high stick in the ensuing scrum, and only one minute into the power play, Utah was penalized again — this time for tripping.

But the Wild’s 5-on-3 power play was more like a 5-on-2 since the Mammoth were down to just two sticks, the third broken in pieces on the ice.

Cue Vejmelka vs. Kaprizov.

First, Vejmelka gloved down Kaprizov’s wrister to get a whistle. Then, for an encore, he moved quickly in his crease to get a piece of a backdoor one-timer from Kaprizov.

Utah ended up killing off both penalties and went 4-for-4 on the night, but Kaprizov was relentless.

Turning point

On his next shift after the power play, Kaprizov got a piece of a clear by the Mammoth to keep the Wild in the offensive zone.

Vladimir Tarasenko scooped up the bounce and passed off to Kaprizov, whose shot sailed wide. Kaprizov made a beeline for the rebound but was tripped up in the process, leading to a shot from his left knee that he threw by Vejmelka with 5:50 to go in the first period for his 37th goal, which is tops on the Wild.

In the second, Boldy extended the Wild’s lead 8:43 into the period when he buried a 2-on-1 pass from Marcus Johansson, who was back after missing two games with an injury. Boldy’s 36th goal was also his 73rd point, which tied his career high.

Then, only 2:09 into the third, Brink pounced on a loose puck for his 14th goal of the season, a career high.

Just four minutes later, Tarasenko picked up his second assist of the night after he handed the puck off to Yurov, who skated from Wild territory to Utah’s zone, where he went 1-on-1 against MacKenzie Weegar and fended off the Mammoth defenseman before lifting in a shot.

After a third successful penalty kill by the Wild, Hartman tapped in the puck after it bounced off him with 1:21 left. The assist was Nick Foligno’s first with the Wild since his trade from Chicago, and Kaprizov also factored in on the goal.

Vejmelka finished with 25 saves.

Key stat

In their last three victories, the Wild had a different player score each goal.

What it means

Coach John Hynes didn’t get into specifics, but he felt there were certain fixes the Wild had to make to finally figure out the Mammoth, and Minnesota definitely adjusted since Utah’s speed wasn’t wreaking havoc like in past games.

Yes, the Mammoth were finishing a long road trip and completing a back-to-back, but the Wild deserved this result. They quickly regained momentum after losing it on those first-period power plays, and they patiently grew their lead — cashing in on that breakdown before the Johansson to Boldy goal.

The Wild were methodical but also opportunistic, and with Gustavsson continuing to be locked in, they ran away for the convincing victory.

Up next

The Wild’s homestand continues Thursday against the Philadelphia Flyers.

____