SAN JOSE, Calif. — Matt Boldy had two goals, Kirill Kaprizov picked up three assists and the Wild soundly beat the Sharks 5-2 Thursday night in San Jose.
A goal by Mats Zuccarello put the Wild ahead 2-1 in the second period, set up by Kaprizov's no-look pass through multiple defenders. Kaprizov entered the night sixth in the league with 17 assists.
Boldy scored on the power play in the second to double Minnesota’s lead, and defenseman Jonas Brodin made it 4-1 with a slap shot from the point in the third.
Boldy added an empty-net goal with 1:35 remaining.
Minnesota jumped out early, with defenseman Zach Bogosian putting the Wild ahead 1-0 in the first.
Young in age versus Sage
When Marc-Andre Fleury made his NHL debut in 2003, Macklin Celebrini was nearly three years away from being born.
On Thursday, the two combined for a bit of statistical novelty as the San Jose Sharks phenom and the league’s youngest player scored on the Minnesota Wild goaltender – the NHL’s oldest.
“Good for him,” Fleury said with a laugh, when told about the stat.
Celebrini, the top pick in the NHL draft, scored twice in the Sharks’ 5-2 loss to the Wild. At 18 years old, Celebrini is more than two decades younger than Fleury, who has been in the league for 21 years and has indicated this will be his last season.
“He’s been in the league longer than I’ve been alive, so it’s been amazing to watch his career,” Celebrini said about Fleury. “Obviously, the runs he had with Pittsburgh and Vegas, and even him in Chicago and now Minnesota. He seems like a great personality, and it’s been fun to watch his off-ice antics as much as his on-ice.”
Celebrini’s first goal came when he was in the right spot at the right time on a 3-on-2 rush. His second was a wrist shot, a no-look goal that whistled past Fleury’s glove, off the crossbar and in. The 18-year-old had a team-leading seven shots and his second multi-point performance in three career games in what was his best game yet of his young career.
“He’s got good awareness of where guys are at,” Fleury said. “He’s got a good shot. That last goal, I love. I wish I could get it back, but (it was) still good. Right at the bar above my head. I’ll be looking forward to watching him.”
Fleury himself made history Thursday by playing in his 1,029th career game, tying Patrick Roy for most among NHL goaltenders.
He also won what could have been his last game in San Jose, and is on an eight-game win streak at the Shark Tank. Fleury backstopped the Pittsburgh Penguins to the Stanley Cup in 2016, winning the championship in Game 6 in San Jose.
He said he’ll have fond memories of the building.
“The atmosphere in the Tank is always good when the playoffs come around,” Fleury said. “It’s buzzing. Even in the regular season, they’ve had a good team for so many years while I was playing, and it was always a tough game coming in.” ___
Macklin Celebrini, the top pick in the 2024 NHL draft, scored both goals for the Sharks. Celebrini tied the game early in the second for the Sharks, and then scored again in the third period. His two goals marked a statistical novelty, as Celebrini - the NHL's youngest player - scored on Marc-Andre Fleury, who is the league's oldest.
Fleury - playing in his 1,029th career game - had 24 saves and tied Patrick Roy for third-most games played in NHL history among goaltenders.
Takeaways
Wild: Boldy’s goal snapped an 0 for 17 streak on the power play for Minnesota, which rebounded from a deflating 5-1 beatdown by the LA Kings on Tuesday.
Sharks: Celebrini has three goals in his first three NHL games. In just his second game since returning from a hip injury, the rookie phenom had a team-high seven shots and recorded the second multi-point game of his young career.
Key Moments
Celebrini energized the Sharks with his game-tying goal early in the second period, but Kaprizov’s assist on Zuccarello’s goal minutes later gave the Wild the lead and momentum back.
What's Next
The Wild play the Ducks on the road on Friday in the second game of a back-to-back.
Anaheim is riding a three-game losing streak with a 4-6-2 record overall, 2-3-0 record on its home ice. The Ducks have given up 36 goals while scoring 25 for a -11 scoring differential. Troy Terry has five goals and five assists for the Ducks.