Wild give nothing to Alex Ovechkin, grab victory over Capitals for themselves

Alex Ovechkin was sad Marc-Andre Fleury was on the bench instead of in the net for the Capitals’ final game of the regular season against the Wild.

“It was a pretty good battle out there between me and him,” Ovechkin said of their decadeslong rivalry that flatters both: Fleury won his third Stanley Cup in 2017 after he and Pittsburgh eliminated Ovechkin and Washington, while Ovechkin has scored more vs. Fleury than any other goaltender.

Ovechkin didn’t get any closer to Wayne Gretzky’s all-time goals record Thursday night, the Wild locking up the lead once they regained it during their 4-2 victory at Xcel Energy Center that advanced them in their own chase for a playoff berth, and Ovechkin shifted the spotlight to Fleury postgame when he had the Capitals line up to shake Fleury’s hand.

“That relationship is a little bit of a hate-love,” Marcus Foligno said, “but it’s one of those where you just tip your cap to the other guy.”

As much as there were big-picture implications — from Ovechkin needing six goals to pass Gretzky’s 894 to the final game between Ovechkin and Fleury barring a Stanley Cup Final reunion — the immediate stakes were more pressing for the Wild, and they played like it.

Frederick Gaudreau scored twice, Matt Boldy set up the equalizer, then split a 2-2 tie with nine seconds left in the second period with his team-leading 24th goal, and goaltender Filip Gustavsson made 28 saves to help the Wild avoid finishing the toughest stretch of their week (Dallas, Vegas and Washington) empty-handed.

That prevented St. Louis from closing the gap for the first wild-card spot in the Western Conference.

The Blues were catching up after the Wild were blanked 3-0 by the Stars on Monday and then fell 5-1 to the Golden Knights on Tuesday, but they’re still two points back of the Wild’s 87 despite winning eight in a row.

“We’re a positive group,” said Boldy, who set a franchise record with his ninth game-winning goal, tied for second in the NHL. “We know what we’re capable of, and I thought we went out there and played a great game.”

The Wild were ready from the get-go and capitalized first when, at 6 minutes of the first period, Jon Merrill unleashed a point shot by Justin Brazeau, who was setting a screen in front of Capitals goalie Charlie Lindgren.

Washington, as befits its position atop the NHL, responded quickly.

Only 1:08 after Merrill’s tally, Matt Roy sent a rising shot by Gustavsson. Then 1:41 after that, former Wild forward Brandon Duhaime deposited a Nic Dowd handoff into the Wild net.

The Wild challenged to check for goaltender interference — Dowd was in front of Gustavsson as he passed off to Duhaime — but the goal stood; the Wild survived the ensuing Capitals power play and went 2-for-2 on the penalty kill.

Washington didn’t ease up in the second, and Ovechkin had plenty of looks.

After he had a deflection go wide in the first and a few tries at the post, Ovechkin was denied on the power play while continuing to wind up. He also had the puck pried off him by Jonas Brodin in the third period during an attempted breakaway to stay at 889 goals.

“It’s always fun to try to stop those guys,” said Brodin, who didn’t think he slashed Ovechkin on the play. “You get extra motivation. You want to stop those guys because you want to make it hard for them, to make them frustrated. That’s what I’m trying to do every game.”

Ovechkin had 11 shot attempts while skating 19:03, the Capitals captain praising the Wild’s Russian star before the game.

“He’s a top player, obviously, when he’s healthy,” Ovechkin said of Kirill Kaprizov. “Always fun to watch highlights of him.”

Although Kaprizov wasn’t in action, he was on the ice earlier in the day.

He and Joel Eriksson Ek have resumed skating as they continue to recover from their lower-body injuries. Neither’s return is imminent, coach John Hynes said, with both considered week-to-week.

BOXSCORE: Wild 3, Capitals 2

NHL standings

The Wild did get Marcus Foligno back after he sat out five games hurt, but the comeback was led by Boldy, who has seven points in his past six games.

His shot after moving to the point on the power play (1-for-2) for the first time was deflected in by Gaudreau at 12:25 of the second period for a 2-2 tie.

“Try and put your best shooter in positions to be able to shoot,” Hynes said.

In the final minute of the period, Boldy corralled a Marco Rossi pass with one hand on his stick and then lifted the puck over Lindgren. The Lakeville native, who is still seeking his first career victory against the Wild, had 17 saves.

A Gaudreau flip into an empty net with 1:21 remaining capped off his two-goal night, which was meaningful for the Wild in more ways than one.

“Just shows when we’re playing at our best, we are where we should be,” Gustavsson said. “We are one of the top teams.”