NHL

Minnesota Wild at Pittsburgh Penguins

· National Hockey League
Final
5 - 3

Marc-Andre Fleury stops 26 to lead Wild past Penguins 5-3

Marc-Andre Fleury takes pictures with former teammates in final return to Pittsburgh

Frederick Gaudreau scored twice and Kirill Kaprizov added a goal and two assists. Kaprizov tied the franchise record with his sixth straight multipoint game. Mats Zuccarello and Jakub Lauko also scored for Minnesota.

Rickard Rakell scored twice and Valtteri Puustinen got his first power-play goal for Pittsburgh.

Sidney Crosby had three assists. Joel Blomqvist stopped 34 shots for Pittsburgh.

Fleury, who turns 40 next month, indicated the 2024-25 season will be his last. Fleury, now in his 21st NHL season, played his 100th game with Minnesota on Tuesday.

He spent the first 13 seasons of his career with Pittsburgh and won three Stanley Cups in 2009, 2016 and 2017.

Pittsburgh traded up to select an 18-year-old Fleury No. 1 in the 2003 NHL Draft and he responded by stabilizing the franchise during a tumultuous time in its history.

Fleury, still a fan favorite in Pittsburgh, acknowledged the crowd following a video tribute during the first television timeout as the beloved goaltender received a standing ovation and loud chants in an emotional moment.

Takeaways Wild: Minnesota has won five of its last six games.

Penguins: Pittsburgh lost its sixth straight game. Pittsburgh gave up at least four goals for the seventh straight time and the ninth time in 11 games

Key moment Pittsburgh held an early 2-0 lead, but Lauko and Gaudreau scored in a 55-second span, as the Wild took control with the next four goals.

Key stat Fleury leads virtually all major goaltending categories in Penguins’ history, including wins (375), games played (667), shutouts (44), playoff wins (62), playoff games (115) and playoff shutouts (10).

Up next The Wild open a three-game homestand Friday against Tampa Bay. The Penguins continue a three-game homestand Thursday against Anaheim.

Regular Season Series

MIN leads series 1-0

Scoring Summary

Goal 1st Period 11:36 Valtteri Puustinen Goal (1) Snap Shot, assists: Matt Grzelcyk (5), Sidney Crosby (7)
Goal 1st Period 15:31 Rickard Rakell Goal (5) Snap Shot, assists: Kris Letang (2), Sidney Crosby (8)
Goal 1st Period 17:03 Jakub Lauko Goal (2) Wrist Shot, assists: Marat Khusnutdinov (2)
Goal 1st Period 17:58 Frederick Gaudreau Goal (1) Wrist Shot, assists: none
Goal 2nd Period 1:38 Frederick Gaudreau Goal (2) Wrist Shot, assists: Kirill Kaprizov (12), Brock Faber (4)
Goal 2nd Period 19:23 Mats Zuccarello Goal (5) Tip-In, assists: Kirill Kaprizov (13), Marco Rossi (5)
Goal 3rd Period 3:36 Rickard Rakell Goal (6) Wrist Shot, assists: Marcus Pettersson (5), Sidney Crosby (9)
Goal 3rd Period 19:41 Kirill Kaprizov Goal (5) Wrist Shot, assists: Frederick Gaudreau (1), Jake Middleton (5)

Statistics

https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/nhl/500/min.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originMIN https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/teamlogos/nhl/500/pit.png&h=100&scale=crop&w=100&location=originPIT
16 Blocked Shots 11
15 Hits 15
4 Takeaways 3
40 Shots 29
0 Power Play Goals 1
5 Power Play Opportunities 2
0.0 Power Play Percentage 50.0
0 Short Handed Goals 0
0 Shootout Goals 0
25 Faceoffs Won 35
41.7 Faceoff Win Percent 58.3
13 Giveaways 17
3 Total Penalties 6
9 Penalty Minutes 15

Game Information

PPG Paints Arena

Location: Pittsburgh, PA
Attendance: 18,195 | Capacity:

2024-25 Central Division Standings

TEAM W L PTS OTL
Winnipeg 16 3 32 0
Minnesota 12 3 27 3
Dallas 12 6 24 0
Colorado 10 9 20 0
Utah 7 8 17 3
St. Louis 8 11 17 1
Nashville 6 11 15 3
Chicago 6 12 13 1

2024-25 Metropolitan Division Standings

TEAM W L PTS OTL
Carolina 14 4 28 0
Washington 13 4 27 1
New Jersey 12 7 26 2
NY Rangers 12 4 25 1
NY Islanders 7 7 19 5
Philadelphia 8 10 18 2
Pittsburgh 7 10 18 4
Columbus 7 9 16 2
Full Standings