Kirill Kaprizov tore through Florida’s home opener, recording three goals and an assist as the Minnesota Wild skated out of Amerant Bank Arena with a 4-1 win Saturday.
- Kaprizov finished with a hat trick, added a secondary assist and scored the empty-net clincher with 1:04 left.
- Matt Boldy posted one goal and one assist for Minnesota.
- Jesper Wallstedt stopped 29 shots as the Wild improved to 3-1-1 and snapped a two-game skid.
- Matthew Tkachuk supplied Florida’s lone goal.
- Jacob Markstrom made 25 saves for the Panthers, now 2-1-2.
- Florida’s four-game season-opening point streak, which began 2-0-2, came to an end.
- The Panthers also saw their seven-game run of victories in home openers end.
- Florida went 0-for-5 with the extra man and is 1-for-28 on the power play this season.
Kaprizov and Boldy strike early
The Wild got the building quiet in a hurry. Boldy jumped into the offensive zone during a Florida change and beat Markstrom with a wrist shot from the high slot just 53 seconds into the first period.
Kaprizov helped set up that opener, then doubled the margin on Minnesota’s first power play. From the right circle, he buried a one-timer at 6:18 for a 2-0 lead.
Tkachuk gave Florida a push early in the second, cleaning up a loose puck beside Wallstedt at 2:18. Minnesota did not let the game tilt for long.
Boldy found Kaprizov with a pass across the ice at 5:00, and Kaprizov snapped a shot home from the right circle to restore the two-goal cushion. His empty-net finish completed the three-goal night and sealed the 4-1 result.
