NHL Roundup: Kirill Kaprizov makes Wild history, Oilers clinch, and Capitals pull even with Penguins
Anthony Scultore
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It was a light night of action for today’s NHL Roundup. There were only 4 games on the docket for April 22, 2022 but no shortage of thrills.
The Washington Capitals did as expected by beating the Arizona Coyotes to pull even with the Pittsburgh Penguins for third-place in the Metro Division They also tied the Boston Bruins for the top wild card although the B’s have a game in hand. All three teams have 99 points as we head into the final week of action.
Meanwhile, the Edmonton Oilers on a big night from Evander Kane clinched a playoff spot. Plus Kirill Kaprizov posted a four point game to become the first player in team history to record 100 points in a season.
NHL Roundup: Wild 6, Kraken 3
Kirill Kaprizov had a goal and three assists to become the first Wild player to reach 100 points, Kevin Fiala recorded a career- and franchise-high five assists and Minnesota set club records for single-season wins and points with a 6-3 victory over the Seattle Kraken on Friday in Saint Paul, Minn.
“It’s a huge accomplishment,” Kaprizov said. “A huge thank you to the fans, my teammates, the organization. Obviously, it’s a huge accomplishment, I’m extremely thankful and happy. Obviously, getting the team win was super important and made everything that much more sweet.”
Joel Eriksson Ek had two goals with an assist, while Ryan Hartmann, Mats Zuccarello and Nicolas Deslauriers also scored for the playoff-bound Wild, who improved to 7-0-2 in their past nine.
In his second season, Kaprizov already set the franchise’s single-season point mark, but pushed his total to 101 as Minnesota scored five times through the first 14:29 of the second period.
Daniel Sprong and Yanni Gourde scored the game’s first two goals for Seattle, which came in riding the first three-game winning streak in its initial season. The Kraken’s Matty Beniers scored his third goal, and he has a point in each of his first five NHL contests.
Oilers 6, Avalanche 3
Evander Kane scored three goals in the second period and added an assist as host Edmonton beat Colorado to clinch a playoff berth.
“It was a good team win, it’s great to clinch the playoffs here at home,” Kane said. “I thought in the first period we came in a little flat, but we got off to a strong start in the second and carried the momentum all the way through.”
Kailer Yamamoto and Kris Russell had a goal and an assist each, Evan Bouchard contributed a goal and Connor McDavid had three assists for Edmonton. Oilers goalie Mike Smith stopped 34 shots.
Valeri Nichushkin scored two goals, Nathan MacKinnon had a goal and an assist, Andre Burakovsky notched two assists and Darcy Kuemper made 21 saves for the Avalanche. Colorado, which played its second straight game without leading scorer Mikko Rantanen (illness), has lost three in a row for the first time since Oct. 16-21.
Senators 2, Blue Jackets 1 (SO)
Tim Stutzle scored the lone goal in the shootout and visiting Ottawa rallied for a win against Columbus.
Brady Tkachuk scored in regulation and Filip Gustavsson made 33 saves for the Senators, who improved to 4-1-1 in their past six games. They have won consecutive games in shootouts, having topped the Vancouver Canucks 4-3 on Tuesday.
Jack Roslovic scored for the eighth time in his past six games for the Blue Jackets, who have lost four straight (0-3-1). Elvis Merzlikins made 25 saves.
Capitals 2, Coyotes 0
Conor Sheary had a goal and an assist as Washington defeated Arizona in Glendale, Ariz., to pull into a tie with the Pittsburgh Penguins for third place in the Metropolitan Division.
John Carlson also scored and Vitek Vanecek made 19 saves to earn his fourth shutout of the season and the sixth of his career for the Capitals, who are 7-1-1 in their past nine games.
“Actually, this game is really hard because there weren’t too many shots, and in the second period, the guys were buzzing all the time in the offensive zone, so it was really hard for me,” Vanecek said.
Arizona, which opened the season 0-10-1, has lost nine straight (0-8-1), getting outscored 49-13 during that stretch. Karel Vejmelka stopped 27 shots in the latest defeat.
–Field Level Media contributed to this article.