Both the Minnesota Wild and the host Utah Hockey Club are in unfamiliar positions ahead of Tuesday night’s game in Salt Lake City.
The Wild, one of three teams with a league-leading 40 points entering Monday, arrive in Utah following a rare loss.
Meanwhile, the Utah Hockey Club will take their home ice on a winning streak for the first time since the beginning of the season.
Minnesota had won five straight before stumbling 4-1 at Los Angeles on Saturday.
The Wild trailed 2-0 late in the third period until the Kings sandwiched two goals around Yakov Trenin’s tally in the final 1:54.
“I thought we competed hard and definitely had our fair share of chances,” Minnesota defenseman Zach Bogosian said. “We compete right through to the very end, so I think in the long run that will pay off for us, knowing that no matter what we’re going to compete right to the end of the game.”
The Wild managed 10 shots over the first two periods before firing 13 in the third, but the visitors couldn’t break through until Trenin’s second goal of the season made it 3-1 with 1:13 left.
“I think we had the push in the third, (but) we didn’t capitalize,” Minnesota coach John Hynes said. “We capitalized late, but we had other opportunities to be able to do it. … We just didn’t get rewarded for the effort we put in in the third.”
Utah followed up its 5-2 win at Buffalo on Saturday with a 4-2 victory in Philadelphia on Sunday. The consecutive wins were the team’s first since notching three straight to begin the season.
“I think there’s been a lot of games where we’re feeling good, we’re feeling confident, but we just haven’t gotten the results,” Utah defenseman Juuso Valimaki said after Sunday’s win.
“So obviously nice to get some results. We’ve just got to keep going with it and stay with it.”
Logan Cooley collected his seventh goal on Sunday, while Valimaki, Michael Carcone and Kevin Stenlund also scored for Utah. Jaxson Stauber made 22 saves.
Cooley’s power-play goal broke a 2-2 tie with 4:30 left in the second period. Utah had been 1-for-10 on the power play in its previous five games.
“I didn’t like the first two (power plays) that we had,” said Clayton Keller, who picked up an assist on Cooley’s goal. “We watched some clips in between periods and maybe had some better looks after that. We have a lot of skill and speed with the five guys out there.”
In Saturday’s win, Utah scored five unanswered goals across the second and third periods after the Sabres took a 1-0 lead in the first.
Michael Kesselring, Mikhail Sergachev, Nick Schmaltz, Jack McBain and Stenlund tallied for Utah, which led 3-1 after the second period.
“I think we just stayed on them, and we managed the puck pretty well,” Kesselring said of the second period. “Took advantage of our chances and kind of got the momentum and kept it.”
