Matt Boldy's Deflection in OT Sends Wild Past Stars, Ties Series at 2-2

Matt Boldy just walked Minnesota's tightrope between heartbreak and redemption. With 28.9 seconds left in the first overtime, Boldy deflected a Jared Spurgeon shot past Jake Oettinger to lift the Wild over the Dallas Stars 3-2 in Game 4, knotting the first-round playoff series at 2-2. This wasn't just any goal either. It came after Boldy had already watched two of his markers get waved off earlier in the game.

The Drama Behind Boldy's Redemption

Here's the thing about Boldy in this series: he's been pressing. He had a goal disallowed in regulation when a teammate pushed Miro Heiskanen into Oettinger, then saw another one waived off in overtime for a kicking motion. Three goals in the series so far, and two of them didn't count. So when that puck came off his stick shaft and slipped through with under 30 seconds left in OT? Yeah, that one counted. That one mattered.

Boldy kept his cool about it all. "The frustration in our room is nonexistent, I would say, not a difficult thing to do," he said after the win. "It wasn't much of a difficult thing to do to get our rest the last couple days and come back with a good attitude." That's the mentality you need when the margins are this thin.

Special Teams Telling the Real Story

Marcus Foligno tied it 2-2 with a second-effort tip-in with 5:20 left in the third, and Jesper Wallstedt was massive between the pipes with 43 saves. But here's what's eating at Minnesota: the power play is an absolute ghost. The Wild went 0-for-4 with the man advantage in regulation and have just one goal in their last 15 power play chances. They're still without first-line right wing Mats Zuccarello because of an upper-body injury from Game 1, and that absence is showing.

Dallas, on the other hand? Jason Robertson and Heiskanen both scored on regulation power plays, and the Stars are sitting at 8-for-19 in the series. That's special teams mastery, and it's keeping them alive.

Brock Faber had Minnesota's first goal, and Jake Oettinger stopped 40 shots for Dallas in another steely performance. The series heads back to Dallas now tied up, with Game 5 looming. One team is about to face elimination. Everything is on the line from here.

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