ST. PAUL, Minn. _ Since they were picked apart to reveal their most gruesome loss of the season, the Wild did little to suggest that they could discover a workable rhythm while captain Mikko Koivu heals a lower-body injury.
But after given more time to regroup, the team's performance Tuesday inspired much more confidence in its ability to withstand Koivu's absence.
And the players with the most opportunity to lessen that blow set the tone during a 7-1 pasting of the Canadiens in front of 18,681 at Xcel Energy Center that signaled just the second win for the Wild in their last seven outings.
Goalie Devan Dubnyk was spot-on, turning aside 29 shots, and that response on the heels of getting pulled in the 7-2 loss to the Edmonton Oilers Friday after yielding three goals on six shots was enough to chalk this game up as a success. But he wasn't the only one to deliver.
The remade Koivu line featuring wingers Zach Parise and Nino Niederreiter and Charlie Coyle up the middle combined for three goals and six points, defenseman Matt Dumba scored twice and winger Mikael Granlund recorded three assists.
Overall, 11 different players secured at least a point.
For just the 10th time in 30 tries, the Wild capitalized first and the lead was well-deserved.
A wave of early pressure, mostly coming from that Parise-Coyle-Niederreiter trio, finally culminated in a redirect by Niederreiter at 14 minutes, 1 second off a Jonas Brodin point shot set up by Parise _ his 300th point with the Wild.
It was also Niederreiter's second goal in as many games.
The Wild's offense was even better in the second, racking up four goals in 8:46.
Dumba's one-timer inside the left faceoff circle on the power play started the parade at 11:11 before Coyle secured the Wild's fifth short-handed goal when he cut to the inside and lifted a backhander over Montreal goalie Antti Niemi only 1:22 later.
Center Eric Staal buried a fourth at 14:58 when he put back his own rebound with a backhand shot and with just three seconds remaining in the period, defenseman Jared Spurgeon one-timed a Jason Zucker pass by Niemi on the power play.
Four goals in a single period tied the Wild's best output this season.
And the team didn't slow down in the third.
After getting high-sticked by winger Brendan Gallagher, Dumba converted on the ensuing power play 44 seconds into the period _ a shot off the post and in from the right side. Dumba leads all NHL defensemen with 12 goals, and Granlund's assist on the play sealed his team-leading 31st point.
Montreal spoiled Dubnyk's shutout bid on defenseman Jeff Petry's shot at 2:41, but Dubnyk still assembled a slew of clutch saves.
Before Petry's goal, he nixed winger Max Domi's breakaway look.
Earlier in the action, Dubnyk weathered a push by the Canadiens by kicking out a pad save on a Shea Weber point shot. He also had a sequence where he corralled a deflection and then blocked the rebound attempt by winger Jonathan Drouin.
Dubnyk's counterpart Niemi posted 17 saves before getting chased when Parise added another power-play goal at 6:10. The Wild finished 4 for 4 with the man advantage, while the Canadiens blanked on their lone opportunity.
Carey Price made nine saves in relief.
