Preview: Wild vs. Lightning

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- The Minnesota Wild hits home ice again tonight after rallying around Marc-André Fleury in Pittsburgh on Tuesday night, as the goaltender played his final regular season match in the city where he hoisted the Stanley Cup in 2009, 2016, and 2017. Tonight, the team faces the Tampa Bay Lightning for the second time this year, hoping to edge out the Bolts and secure the series sweep.

Info for Tonight's Game:

• When: Friday, November 1 at 7:00 p.m. CT
• Where: Xcel Energy Center (St. Paul, Minnesota)
• Watch: FanDuel Sports Network
• Listen: KFAN 100.3 FM
• Gamecenter: Wild vs. Lightning

Wild Record: 6-1-2, 14 points, T-2nd in Central Division

Lightning Record: 7-3-0, 14 points, 2nd in Atlantic Division

2024-25 Series Record: 1-0-0

All-Time Wild Record: 20-10-4 (14-3-0 at Minnesota)

This Season on Wild vs. Bolts

Minnesota won the series-opening game, 4-2, in Tampa (10/24).

LW Kirill Kaprizov led the Wild with three points (2-1=3). LW Matt Boldy recorded two points (1-1=2). C Joel Eriksson Ek (1-0=1) also scored for Minnesota. G Marc-André Fleury saved 24-of-26 shots faced to earn the win for the Wild.

LW Brandon Hagel (1-0=1) and RW Nikita Kucherov (1-0=1) scored for the Lightning. G Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 14-of-17 shots faced for Tampa Bay.

Wild Leaders Against Lightning

• LW Marcus Johansson leads Minnesota with 22 points (8- 14=22) in 42 career games against Tampa Bay
• RW Mats Zuccarello has 16 points (6-10=16) in 26 matches
• LW Marcus Foligno owns 13 points (8-5=13) in 30 games
• D Zach Bogosian has 12 points (3-9=12) in 36 games

Lightning Leaders Against Wild

• Kucherov leads Tampa Bay with 18 points (9-9=18) in 18 career games against the Wild
• D Ryan McDonagh owns 17 points (4- 13=17) in 23 career game
• LW Jake Guentzel owns 14 points (5-9=14) in 13 games
• RW Cam Atkinson has 11 points (6-5=11) in 19 games

Recent Transactions

The Minnesota Wild signed G Jesper Wallstedt to a two-year contract extension through the 2026-27 season (10/7).

To view more recent transactions, visit wild.com/transactions.

Connections

• Bogosian collected 15 points (4-11=15) in 106 games over parts of four seasons (2019-20, 2021-24) with the Lightning and a member of Tampa Bay’s 2020 Stanley Cup Championship team
• Lightning CEO Steve Griggs spent eight years as Vice President of Sales and Service for the Wild
• Tampa Bay Assistant General Manager, Director of Player Development Stacy Roest collected 48 points (17-31=48) in 134 games with Minnesota (2000-02)
• RW Mitchell Chaffee made his NHL debut with Minnesota (4/19/22 at MTL) and appeared in two games with the Wild in 2021-22
• McDonagh is from Saint Paul

Fast Facts

• Minnesota is 8-3-1 in its last 12 games against Tampa Bay
• The Wild recorded a 10-game win streak vs. the Lightning in Saint Paul (11/28/11 to 1/4/24)
• Minnesota earned its first-ever franchise win, 6-5, against Tampa Bay at Xcel Energy Center (10/18/00)

For more information on tonight's matchup, check out the game notes below.