Dubnyk shines again for Wild in tough-luck loss to Vegas

ST. PAUL -- Wild goaltender Devan Dubnyk can't put his finger on what has brought him success through the season's first two games.
He didn't feel any different exiting the preseason. He hasn't done anything different in terms of his routine or his preparation.
Unfortunately for Dubnyk, however, the Wild's offense hasn't come out of the gates as well as he has. For a second consecutive game, Dubnyk was outstanding in a losing effort, this time a 2-1 shootout loss at the hands of the Vegas Golden Knights at Xcel Energy Center on Saturday.

Dubnyk made 41 saves through regulation and overtime, many of them fantastic, then made two more saves in the shootout.
But after Matt Dumba's goal 9:23 into the contest, Minnesota's offense went stagnant. And with 1:31 left in regulation, Max Pacioretty tied the game for the Golden Knights and sent it to overtime.
Dubnyk made four saves in the extra session, then closed the door on William Karlsson and Jonathan Marchessault in the shootout before Erik Haula found just a skosh of daylight through the five hole, earning the visitors the bonus point.
"He was fantastic," said Wild forward Jason Zucker. "He's the only reason that we didn't lose that game 10-nothing."
Saturday's performance comes on the heels of a 38-save effort in the season opener in Denver on Thursday, where Dubnyk also allowed just two shots to penetrate the net.

"He's seeing the puck, touch wood, and we don't want it to stop," said Wild coach Bruce Boudreau. "But two years ago, he had this kind of game right until March, and he won us hockey games on his own. Right now, he's playing as well as anybody.
"To have only one point and his goals against is 1.5 is not fair to him."
Minnesota will now have four days to try and figure out a way to catch its offense up to Dubnyk and provide him with a little extra run support. The Wild netminder has stopped 79 of the first 82 shots he's faced this season, yet Minnesota remains winless in the standings.
"It's nice to feel good. I've been working on a lot of things to know what it is in my game that I need to do," Dubnyk said. "And as I get older and play more, I can kind of keep adding to that list of things to be ready for breaks or for the start of the season . It's nice to see it, but obviously, it'd be nicer to see it with two wins. But you never know at the beginning of the season how pucks are going to bounce."
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After making eight saves in a workman-like opening period against the Knights, Dubnyk saw his shot volume and quality against increase in the second. During one stretch early in the frame, Dubnyk was forced to make five or six saves -- including a couple of grade-A chances -- in the span of about 30 seconds.

Minnesota was running around the rink during the first 40 minutes, as Vegas ran up a 25-13 edge on the shot chart, but for a second straight game, the Wild got things going in the third period.
The home team outshot Vegas 14-13 over the final 20 minutes, played with pace and had plenty of chances to extend its lead, if not for the sterling play of Marc-Andre Fleury on the other end.
"It [stinks] for Duby too. He played outstanding," said Wild defenseman Jared Spurgeon. "He made a lot of key saves for us when we were sort of slapping pucks around, not making plays. To be that close and come out with only one point [stinks]."
Dubnyk's play through the first two games has been the biggest headline for the Wild, which despite the shootout loss, remains unbeaten in regulation in home openers in franchise history (14-0-4).
"I'm old enough to know that you just need to play," Dubnyk said. "The worst thing you can do is to start force things or think you have to change anything. I know what I need to be sharp on and I trust these guys in front of me, which allows me to be sharp on those things. If I continue to focus on that, we've got a great group in here and the wins will come."
Whatever is working for him in the early going, Dubnyk said he didn't feel any different coming out of the exhibition season. The veteran got three starts in the preseason, allowing 10 goals, but was forced to sit for more than a week between his final exhibition action and the season opener in Denver.
Sometimes, that kind of layoff can adversely effect a goalie, but for Dubnyk, it seems to have done the opposite.
"To be honest, I didn't feel 100 percent comfortable until the third period of the Winnipeg game," Dubnyk said, referring to his final exhibition start on Sept. 26. "Just because that's what it takes in the preseason, that's why you play three games, to sort of build it up."

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