Flyers dump Wild 6-2 as Minnetonka's Bobby Brink scores first two goals of NHL career

PHILADELPHIA – The beginning wasn't the Wild's only problem.

So were the middle and the end.

Their streak of slow starts spilled over into their entire performance on Thursday night, the Wild getting blown out 6-2 by the Flyers at Wells Fargo Center to once again follow up a feel-good win with a miserable loss.

Overall, they are 3-3-1 two weeks into the season.

"Obviously, it's still early, but we got to nip it in the bud now because we can't let this keep trending the wrong way, and it seems that way right now," Pat Maroon said. "It's on us. It's not the coaches. It's the players in here, and we got to be better."

Former Minnetonka standout Bobby Brink scored his first NHL goal, the game-winner, before tallying No. 2 during a late surge by Philadelphia that sunk the Wild's too-little-too-late rally.

Down 3-0 in the third period, the Wild finally took a break from their lull to cut their deficit to one after back-to-back goals from Dakota Mermis (3 minutes, 5 seconds) and Marcus Foligno (4:30).

But the spark fizzled two shifts later.

Cam Atkinson scooped up a Kirill Kaprizov turnover along the boards and set up Owen Tippett for a breakaway that he buried behind Gustavsson at 6:34.

"We all have to do a better job to give him more options," defenseman Brock Faber said. "It was a 1-on-3, and I was diving north for offense, and there's not much he can do there."

That miscue opened the floodgates.

Brink capitalized again on a redirect at 11:02 before Travis Sanheim skated in for a wrist shot at 14:46.

"I don't think it's the turnover," Foligno said. "I think it's just getting what we deserved in that game. We played 15 minutes of it. That's just karma. We got what we deserved."

Gustavsson totaled 29 saves, falling to 2-2-1 with a .885 save percentage and 4.36 goals-against average.

"I don't think there was a bad goal tonight," coach Dean Evason said. "He was just put in a really bad spot by the team."

Since his opening night 41-save shutout, Gustavsson has been tagged for five goals or more in three of his four starts. He gave up five goals only three times last season.

"If you let in six goals, the team is not going to win," said Gustavsson, who was coming off a 7-4 win vs. the Oilers on Tuesday. "It starts back with us as goalies: if we can keep them in the game when we play bad in the beginning of the games, as soon as we catch our edge there, if it's in the second, if it's in the third, we're in the game.

"Today we weren't in the game because we were down 3-0."

Travis Konecny handcuffed Gustavsson at 13:57 of the first, and that lead held for the rest of the period and carried over into the second.

Why wouldn't it?

For almost 20 minutes, the Wild tested Flyers goalie Carter Hart (26 saves) just once. Meanwhile, the Flyers scored more goals than the Wild registered shots.

"The second period was a bit of a disaster," Evason said.

On separate power plays, Sean Couturier backhanded in a rebound at 7:28 before Brink's first goal in his 16th career game at 9:52. A second-round draft pick by Philadelphia in 2019, Brink also has two assists this season in six games.

The Flyers power play went 2-for-3, while the Wild finished 0-for-2.

"Pretty special moment," Brink said. "Growing up watching the Wild and scoring your first goal, it's pretty cool."

For the Wild, the game was a compilation of all their early-season issues — including how leaky they continue to be in their own end, this time from start to finish.

"It doesn't feel like it's clicking yet," Gustavsson said. "I don't know why. We still have the same defensive core, all that stuff. I don't know if we trust each other to do each other's job or if we talk too little. It doesn't click, and we need to start by trusting each other that they're going to do their job so you don't overdo your job."