Wild hang on for 2-1 home victory over Arizona

The Coyotes have lost more games in a row than the Wild have dropped in the last month and a half.

This mismatch wasn't reflected on the ice, with the Wild hanging on 2-1 in front of 19,299 on Saturday at Xcel Energy Center, but how they arrived at that outcome is right up their alley.

"We didn't start this game … thinking we were going to blow anybody out of the rink," coach Dean Evason said. "They play in the same league as we do, the best league in the world. They got good hockey players, good structure. We played Minnesota Wild hockey, and we were able to get the win."

While this extended Arizona's rut to eight games, the Wild opened the second half of their season by winning their second straight since a three-game slide.

Mats Zuccarello's goal rekindled the power play, Frederick Gaudreau scored for the second time in as many games and goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury turned aside 27 shots.

"We managed the puck well, defended well, cleaned the puck around the net and blocked some shots," Fleury said. "Good teamwork."

After a goalless first period, the Wild capitalized in the second after back-to-back penalties by the Coyotes.

During the ensuing 5-on-3 advantage, Kirill Kaprizov set up Zuccarello for a redirect in front at 9 minutes, 39 seconds.

"We were happy that we didn't deviate," Evason said. "We stayed with what we thought was going to give us a chance to have success tonight, and ultimately it did."

That was Zuccarello's 18th goal of the season, and he has four points in three games since returning from a two-game absence. His seven goals on the power play are tied for the most in his career.

"It's always nice to get back into it," Zuccarello said. "It helps when you play with good players that find you."

Kaprizov's assist counted as his seventh point over his past six games. Calen Addison also factored into the goal, and his 19 assists are the second most by a Wild rookie defenseman in team history; only Filip Kuba (21 in 2000-01) has more.

Zuccarello's goal snapped a three-game, 0-for-9 drought for the power play. The Wild finished 1-for-2 (the Coyotes were 0-for-1).

"Power play needed to come through," Evason said.

Only 51 seconds later, and just after their second power play expired, the Wild doubled their lead.

Ryan Hartman slid a pass around Arizona goaltender Connor Ingram to Gaudreau for a one-timer.

"Maybe thought about putting it in myself," Hartman said. "But my momentum carried me too far down past the goal line. Just tried to find somebody."

Gaudreau is up to 11 goals, just three shy of the career high he set last season.

Sam Steel's secondary assist on the play was his 14th point in 14 games. As a result, Steel tied his career high in points at 22 in his first season with the Wild. His three-game point streak also matched his career best.

Ingram ended up making 25 saves, and he had a relatively quiet third period compared to Fleury.

That's when Arizona finally converted, cutting its deficit in half at 5:42 when Lawson Crouse buried the rebound off a Jack McBain shot.

Kaprizov appeared to reinstate the Wild's two-goal cushion at 9:54 on his 100th NHL goal, but Arizona challenged to determine if the play was offside and a video review determined Steel preceded the puck into the offensive zone.

What happened next was a photo finish that looked out of place considering the 21-point difference in the standings between the two teams.

But tidy defending plus opportunistic offense equals a strategy that works for the Wild.

"Don't change," was Evason's in-game message. "Just stay the course. Do what we think we need to do to have success. Don't open it up. We're not trying to get into a track meet.

"I don't care who we're playing or what the records are on the other side. It's how we need to play, and the guys did that."