Wild Step Up in Fleury's Final Game in Pittsburgh – Hockey Writers – Minnesota Wild

Following a tough regulation loss on Saturday, October 26, the Minnesota Wild looked to bounce back against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Tuesday, Oct. net for the last time in the city where he made his NHL debut. It was a back-and-forth game, but in the end, the Wild got Fleury.

Things got off to a rough start as the Penguins scored the first two goals of the game and put the Wild on their heels for a bit. However, the Wild found a way to respond late in the period with a goal by Jakub Lauko that went between the Penguins goalie and the pipe from the opposite end. That goal gave his team the energy they needed to jump back into the country, and they added another goal 55 seconds later to tie the game and end the first half at 2-2.

In the second half, the Wild started things off by taking a 3-2 lead. After that goal, it was mostly quiet, except for Sidney Crosby catching Brock Faber, who after running away from Crosby, was blocked by Jack St. Ivany, from the bench to start. to fight. It was Faber's first career fight and the Wild's first of the season.

Fortunately, nothing happened while Faber was in the box, and the match continued. Before the end of the second period, the Wild added another goal to take the lead by two. In the final period, the Penguins tried to come back with a goal early in the period, but the Wild and Fleury were ready and held on until they scored an empty net goal in the end to win 5-3. In this article, we'll take a look at how the Wild came back to win this game, starting with their never-quit attitude.

Wild Didn't Give Up

Despite a rough start that saw the Wild go down 2-0 in the morning, Fleury later admitted he wasn't at his best in the first half during a post-game interview. They find a way to buckle down and play their game until the end of regulation. The Wild have now come back to win two games after sleeping in the morning, and have come back from being down in game three only to fall in that one to the Flyers.

The Wild also found themselves in early penalty trouble, which led to one of the Penguins' first goals. However, following that time, they refocused and remained locked in, despite Faber fighting. After those penalties, especially the Faber fight, it would have been easy for the Wild to lose control and let frustration seep in. Instead, they let out a few hisses and went back to their style of play again, which led to their victory.

The Wild peppered the opposing goaltender all night with shot after shot until they finally found an open spot. After that first goal, the rest came easily thanks to strong shots and hard work from everyone on the team. Fleury also played a big part in this one as he turned on his A game after those first two goals and did his best to keep them out with some big Fleury-esqe saves. Well done.

The Wild's Fleury is back

Fleury had a bad start to the game, admitting afterwards that everything was in his head and he wasn't completely ready to start it, which is to be expected. However, following those two goals, the first one was slightly on him and the second goal was more on Fleury's shoulders, but he went back.

He made save after save, and although he conceded another goal in the third, he hung on until the end and helped his team secure the win. He made 26 saves on 29 shots and had a .897 save percentage, so it wasn't huge, but it got the job done. He did what he set out to do, which was to enjoy the game and get the win.

Wild's Scoring From All-Around Lineup Again

While the top line usually gets the attention when it comes to scoring, this time, it was the bottom half of the lineup that started things off. Firstly, Lauko has been a strong presence in the team all season and is giving himself and his teammates scoring opportunities.

Once Lauko got things going, third striker Frédérick Gaudreau showed what he was capable of with not one but back-to-back goals in the first and second half, his first two goals of the season. Not to be outdone, the top line got on the board with the last two goals scored by Mats Zuccarello and, of course, teammate Kirill Kaprizov, who has been on fire lately when it comes to assists; currently up to 13.

The Wild count on their top line to score almost every night, but it's a nice bonus if they get their third and fourth lines to contribute points. That's how they will win games, especially if they are behind. Having all of their program steps to contribute will lead them to victory.

Wild Head Home

For the first time in nearly three weeks and seven games, the Wild will return home to Minnesota and the comfort of the Xcel Energy Center. They will face the Tampa Bay Lightning on Friday, Nov. 1, and stay at home for the next two games. Hopefully, they will be able to turn this into another win and secure some important points.

Related: Wild's Marc-André Fleury Gets This Special Treatment

Coming off of their win over the Penguins, it was a big night for Fleury, and it turned out to be everything he expected without a bad start. He should be happy for all the fans and see how much they have loved his game over the years, and he returned the favor with a big win for the Wild fans, of course. However, the Penguins fans who were there didn't seem to care about the loss since it was Fleury's. He is a hard working, dedicated player and he has earned a loud and amazing message that he will remember for a long time.