ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Marco Rossi scored the go-ahead goal in the second period and Vladimir Tarasenko had a goal and two assists, helping the Minnesota Wild stop a five-game losing streak with a 5-2 victory over the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday night.
Vinnie Hinostroza and Jonas Brodin padded the lead with goals in the third period, and Ryan Hartman added an empty-netter for the Wild (4-6-3), who notched their first regulation win in seven games on home ice this season.
Joel Eriksson Ek had two assists and Filip Gustavsson made 26 saves for the Wild, who were superb on special teams.
Tarasenko's backhander off a slick pass from Eriksson Ek came during a power play in the first period, and the Wild's penalty kill was 3 for 3 in keeping the Canucks out of the net with their man advantages after going just 1 for 5 over the first four games of this homestand.
Drew O'Connor scored twice and Aatu Raty had two assists for the banged-up Canucks (6-7-0), who have lost five of their last seven games and have only three regulation wins.
Canucks captain Quinn Hughes missed his fourth straight game with a lower-body injury but joined the team on this trip and was expected to return soon. Right wing Brock Boeser returned to the first line after being forced out of the last game at St. Louis with an injury.
Tarasenko, who's in his first season with Minnesota, had his first three-point game since April 1, 2024, with Florida, a span of 100 regular-season games. The 14th-year veteran has 13 goals and 19 assists in 32 career games against Vancouver.
The Wild are 16-4-1 in their last 21 games against the Canucks.
Vancouver plays on Monday at Nashville. The Predators then visit Minnesota on Tuesday as the Wild finish their six-game homestand.
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AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/NHL
