Kirill Kaprizov, Mats Zuccarello lead Wild to preseason finale victory over Dallas

A summer off doesn't seem to have cooled the chemistry between Kirill Kaprizov and Mats Zuccarello.

The Wild's dynamic duo combined for three goals, two by Kaprizov, in a 5-1 rout of the Stars on Saturday at Xcel Energy Center that put an exclamation point on the team's preseason with six victories in seven games.

That lone loss was when the Wild dressed a young lineup vs. the veteran Blues.

"It'll be fun to get going for real," goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury said.

This was the first time in training camp the Wild had all their healthy NHLers in action, a potential preview of how the team could debut on Thursday in the season and home opener against the New York Rangers, and the Wild certainly look ready.

Joel Eriksson Ek stuffed in a wraparound in the first period before Kaprizov converted on the power play, finishing off a Zuccarello pass put in motion by Matt Boldy.

In the second, the rebound from a Marco Rossi shot caromed in off Brandon Duhaime, and Kaprizov impressed with a heads-up, give-and-go pass to Zuccarello for a slam-dunk one-timer.

"Sometimes it frustrates us because they're only looking for each other," coach Dean Evason said. "You have to live with that because of a goal like that. Kirill makes that pass to Zuccy, I don't think anyone saw him except for Kirill.

"Yeah, they definitely have something special."

Then during a 4-on-3 power play in the third, Zuccarello was the architect, setting up Kaprizov for a blistering shot. Both players finished with three points apiece.

Kaprizov, Zuccarello and Duhaime tied Tyson Jost for the team lead in exhibition goals with three, and Rossi led the way in scoring with nine points. Overall, the Wild outscored opponents 27-12.

Fleury surrendered just one goal the entire preseason in three appearances, stopping 46 of 47 shots with 22 of those saves coming against Dallas; the only puck that eluded him was a deflection off the Stars' Joe Pavelski in the second period.

"I'm glad I got this game because the other ones were very quiet," Fleury said.

Whether or not the Wild's special-teams play has progressed will be decided in the regular season, but signs of improvement did pop up in camp.

The power play capitalized at least once in four games, racking up seven goals, and the penalty kill was scored on just twice while also contributing three shorthanded goals.

Evason linked those tallies to the aggressive style the Wild want from their penalty kill after last season's struggles; the PK ranked in the bottom third at 76.1%, while the power play was inconsistent (20.5%).

"Get it all the way down the ice any way you can," Evason said. "That means dumping it out. That means skating it out. That means having a chance to score a goal. Just get it down there. So, we've been fortunate, caught a couple of breaks and scored some goals on it. But the priority is our clears, which was a problem for us last year, and we've done a good job of it so far."

Mason Shaw wasn't in the lineup Saturday, but the forward could still make the opening-night roster after a strong display at training camp.

"I'm ecstatic," Shaw said. "This is where I want to be. This is my fifth year with the organization, but this is where I want to be. It took some time to get here for sure, and there's still a lot of things to unfold.

"But [I'm] just extremely grateful for this opportunity."

Shaw and Nic Petan didn't face the Stars, and the Wild have the room to keep both if they want two extra forwards around instead of just one.

In four preseason games, Shaw chipped in a goal and two assists but it's his grit and work ethic that have stood out.

That's nothing new for Shaw; the 23-year-old has overcome two anterior cruciate ligament surgeries since getting drafted in the fourth round by the Wild in 2017 and three overall.

"I learned from those, but that's something that's kind of behind me," Shaw said. "It's part of my story, but I've gained from it and I feel as good as I've ever felt right now."