ST. PAUL, Minn. _ The Wild will spend their nine-day hiatus in between games out of a playoff spot but before their season paused for the NHL All-Star break and the ensuing bye week, the team moved a bit closer to a berth.
Now only five points separate the Wild from the second wild-card seed in the Western Conference after they shrugged off the lowly Red Wings, 4-2, Wednesday in front of 17,212 at Xcel Energy Center, finally making a move in the standings after winning three of their last four games.
Like those other victories in the lead-up to the break, the Wild was paced by an all-hands-on-deck attack.
Eight players tallied at least a point, and each goal came from someone new. But the top line was the major catalyst, combining for five points. Center Eric Staal and winger Mats Zuccarello each recorded a goal and assist, while defenseman Matt Dumba had two assists.
Goalie Devan Dubnyk made just 25 saves in his first start in four games.
Actually, all of the offense this game was supplied by the Wild since both Red Wings goals were own goals against the Wild.
The first came just 3 minutes, 8 seconds into the first period after winger Filip Zadina's shot was deflected in by center Joel Eriksson Ek's outstretched stick.
By 4:28, the Wild made up for their mistake when winger Jordan Greenway backhanded in a puck that initially hit him after it was thrown toward the net from the point by Dumba. The goal was Greenway's first in seven games.
Another fortuitous sequence helped Detroit regain the lead.
With 3:21 remaining in the first and while on its first of two power plays in the game, Zadina's throw on net bounced off Dubnyk, defenseman Jared Spurgeon and then defenseman Ryan Suter before rolling into the net.
But a three-goal second period in which the Wild outshot the Red Wings 15-5 flipped the advantage.
Only 1:12 into the second, Zuccarello batted in his own rebound. Just 1:07 later, the Wild moved ahead 3-2 when winger Jason Zucker wired in a shot off the rush past Detroit goalie Jimmy Howard.
At 11:39, Staal added an insurance goal when he pounced on a loose puck. Staal has 17 points in his last 19 games. And with an assist on the play, winger Zach Parise is two shy of 400 for his career.
The period was the 15th time this season the Wild have scored three or more in a single frame.
Howard finished with 29 saves for Detroit.
The Wild didn't receive a single power play, snapping their season-high streak of four straight games with a tally.
But the number that matters more is the distance between the Wild and a playoff spot, which dropped from seven to five.
With the win, the Wild leapfrogged Nashville but the Predators have three games at-hand. Another two teams _ Winnipeg and Chicago _ stand between the Wild and Vegas, which is currently occupying that final playoff spot in the West.
Only the Jets have played as many games as the Wild, while the Blackhawks and Golden Knights have logged more.
The Wild's positioning could shift while they're idle, especially when the teams around them get back in action before the Wild do. But regardless of where they sit when they resume play Feb.1 against Boston, the Wild will still have work to do to bridge the gap.
