3. Minnesota Runnin’ Wild
It has been an incredible start to the 2020-21 season for the Minnesota Wild who are currently second in the West Division with a 4-1-0 record, just behind the Vegas Golden Knights who sit atop the Division.
While it is still early days, the Wild have looked impressive so far and a lot of their success can be attributed to rookie Kirill Kaprizov, who has taken the NHL by storm and currently leads all rookies in points with five (1 G, 4 A). Kaprizov, who has an Overtime winner under his belt, is proving to be the spark this stagnant franchise badly needed and he’s pure entertainment every single time he has the puck on his stick.
If Kirill Kaprizov pulled this off.. pic.twitter.com/IN4dUKbcVr
— Dimitri Filipovic (@DimFilipovic) January 23, 2021
Center Joel Eriksson EK is also off to a hot start with three goals and two assists for five points in five games, and the Wild will be leaning on more magic from Kaprizov to try and earn a second consecutive win over the San Jose Sharks after beating them 4-1 in their home opener on Friday, a game that saw Zach Parise score his first goal of the year.
Tonight’s game will also be an important one for the Sharks given that they are 2-3-0 to start the year and, in a season where they are expected to once again miss the postseason, the pressure will really start to build if they can’t begin to turn things around with there little room for error in a 56-game season.