ST. PAUL, Minn. _ The Wild banked three wins out of a possible four during their recent road trip despite little to no production from some of their offensive leaders.
But the likes of Jason Zucker and Eric Staal resurfaced Thursday to ensure the team didn't sag in its return home, leading the Wild to a 3-2 win over the Jets in front of 19,072 at Xcel Energy Center _ the group's fourth victory in its last five and fifth over the past seven.
Zucker scored twice, including the game-winner, to snap a seven-game slide, while Staal set up the other _ more than enough offense to go along with a 26-save showing from goaltender Devan Dubnyk, who has been almost unbeatable of late.
Over his last six games, Dubnyk is 5-1 and has stopped 175 of the 187 shots he's faced for an impressive .936 save percentage.
He was air-tight against Winnipeg while the Wild assembled a lead it wouldn't relinquish.
Only 5 minutes, 40 seconds into the first period, Staal fed winger Jordan Greenway for a shot that trickled through Jets goalie Connor Hellebuyck _ a redemption play for Greenway, who had an attempt blocked after accepting a pass from Staal earlier in the frame.
It was the fourth time this season Greenway has opened the scoring, tops among NHL rookies, and Greenway has two tallies in his last four games.
The assist was just Staal's second point over the last seven games, a span that includes no goals, but his chemistry with Greenway was a bright spot, as Staal ended up with three shots on net.
Special-teams play stoked the Wild's edge in the second.
Captain Mikko Koivu fed Zucker for a redirect in front on the power play at 11:04, just the Wild's second score with the man advantage in their last 25 tries. Overall, the unit finished 1-for-2 against the Jets.
And after the team survived a Zucker hooking penalty, winger Zach Parise flipped the puck into the offensive zone for Zucker to catch up to for a breakaway _ which he capitalized on by lifting the puck over Hellebuyck at 17:50.
With 12 goals, Zucker is tied for the third-most on the Wild.
Defenseman Jared Spurgeon had the secondary assist, his second of the game for his third multi-point effort in the last five games. Since Jan. 1, Spurgeon ranks tied for first among NHL defensemen in goals (3) and tied for third in points (7).
And the Wild's penalty killers rebounded from a 0-for-2 performance in the 4-0 loss to the Boston Bruins on Tuesday by surviving all four Jets' power plays.
But with 41 seconds left in the second, Winnipeg wrecked Dubnyk's bid for a second straight shutout when winger Brandon Tanev pounced on a loose puck in front and wired it over Dubnyk _ who was coming off a 32-save performance in the 1-0 win over the Montreal Canadiens on Monday.
Dubnyk's shutout streak ended at 108:51, and he was busy the rest of the way since the Wild didn't register a shot on Hellebuyck in the third period. He ended up with 19 saves.
Eventually, the pressure the Jets continued to apply resulted in another goal _ this one from center Mark Scheifele, who wove a shot through traffic and by Dubnyk with 2:38 remaining.
Winnipeg continued to vie for the tying goal, but time ran out on its pursuit and the Wild improved to 3-0 this season against their Central Division rival.
