Kaprizov Had the Last Word and the Wild Are One Win Away From Colorado

Kirill Kaprizov was everywhere Tuesday night in Dallas, and the Minnesota Wild are now one victory away from punching their ticket to face the top-seeded Colorado Avalanche. Kaprizov lit up the scoresheet with a goal and two assists as the No. 3 seeded Wild beat the Stars 4-2 in Game 5 of their Western Conference First Round series, pushing their lead to 3-2 with Game 6 set for Thursday night back in Minnesota.

Dallas Made it Close, Then Kaprizov Sealed It

The Stars came roaring back in the third period when they pulled goalie Jake Oettinger during 4-on-4 play late in the frame. Jason Robertson's centering pass deflected off Minnesota's Jarred Spurgeon right in front and snuck past the goal line at 16:39 to cut it to 3-2. For a moment, it felt like Dallas had life. Then Kaprizov buried an empty netter at 18:00 and that was all she wrote. Final: 4-2 Wild.

Matt Boldy added a goal and an assist for Minnesota, while Mats Zuccarello and Michael McCarron also scored. Jesper Wallstedt stopped 20 shots between the pipes.

The Wild Built Their Edge Early and Held On

Minnesota struck first when Zuccarello, back after missing three games with an upper-body injury suffered in Game 1, collected his own rebound and fed Kaprizov, who slid a pass across the crease that Zuccarello tucked in at the right post just 3:51 into the first period. Heiskanen tied it with a beautiful 50-foot power-play snipe at 8:58, but Boldy answered with a power-play goal at 19:28 of the second off a return pass from Quinn Hughes. McCarron made it 3-1 early in the third when he chased down a loose puck and chipped it past Oettinger.

Robertson and Heiskanen each had a goal and an assist for Dallas, and Oettinger made 24 saves.

Game 6 is Thursday in Minnesota. Win that one, and the Wild move on to face Colorado. Dallas has to win to force a Game 7 at home. One game between here and the second round.

This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.