{{pageModel.leagueAbbr}} {{pageModel.subtitle}} | Las Vegas Review-Journal
National Hockey League
Minnesota 5, Calgary 3
When: 10:00 PM ET, Wednesday, February 17, 2016
Where: Scotiabank Saddledome, Calgary, Alberta
Referees: Kevin Pollock, Kyle Rehman
Linesmen: Darren Gibbs, Brandon Gawryletz
Attendance: 19289

CALGARY, Alberta -- Minnesota Wild left winger Erik Haula wasn't thinking about returning the favor when he set up Jason Pominville for the game-winning goal on Wednesday night.

Both Haula and Pominville, a right winger, had a goal and an assist to lead the Wild to a 5-3 win over the Calgary Flames at the Scotiabank Saddledome.

"You don't think about stuff like that," said Haula, who one-timed a feed from Pominville past Calgary goalie Jonas Hiller at 10:22 of the first period and then drew an assist on his linemate's game winner at 18:16 of the second. "He made a great play to me and he played a great game. It doesn't matter at this time who scores, but it's always nice to get the line involved."

Center Nino Niederreiter chipped in with two assists to give the line six points as the Wild (25-22-10) won their second straight game under interim head coach John Torchetti.

"Any win on the road is a good win," said Torchetti. "When it was 3-2, that was a huge goal, that fourth one. It was good to have a good second period and keep getting better and build from there."

Center Mikko Koivu had a goal and an assist, while left winger Jason Zucker and Charlie Coyle also scored.

Wild goaltender Devan Dubnyk made 25 saves to record his 20th win of the season.

Defenseman Deryk Engelland, right winger David Jones and center Mikael Backlund scored for the Flames (25-28-3), who have lost three straight games.

"We didn't have it tonight," said Jones. "In the first period, they were picking us apart. We always play hard in the third when we're down, but we have to find a way to have that tenacity when the game's 0-0."

Appearing in his sixth straight game, Hiller stopped 19 of 23 shots he faced in a losing cause.

Backlund pulled the Flames within a goal at 15:49 of the third when he kicked a pass from defenseman TJ Brodie onto his stick for an easy tap-in at the side of the net.

Coyle then scored into an empty net with 42.8 seconds remaining to secure the win for the Wild.

"It was a good way to finish it, especially at the end we had to battle out and play tight," said Koivu. "For sure, that's the way you build confidence back again."

Dubnyk had to be sharp in the early going as he stopped a backhand shot from the slot by Flames center Sean Monahan.

Looking to give his team a boost, Engelland leveled Wild center Mikael Granlund with a big check into the boards behind the Calgary net at the midway mark of the opening period.

On the next shift, it was the Wild that responded as Haula one-timed a nice pass from Pominville past Hiller to open the scoring.

Minnesota went up by a pair at 19:34 of the first on a shorthanded goal by Zucker, who made a nice move to cut around Flames rookie defenseman Jakub Nakladal before snapping a perfect shot to the top corner off the post and in behind Hiller.

Minnesota extended its lead to 3-0 at 3:09 of the second during a two-man advantage when defenseman Ryan Suter's point shot deflected off Flames blue-liner Mark Giordano and then Koivu past Hiller. Wild left winger Zach Parise also had an assist to record his 600th NHL point.

Calgary then cut into Minnesota's lead with a pair of goals as Engelland scored his first in 56 games at 11:28 of the second before Jones notched his first in 15 contests just over five minutes later.

"We battled back," said Calgary coach Bob Hartley. "I give credit to our players, but we just can't put ourselves into those situations."

Jones' shot from the slot hit Wild defenseman Mike Reilly's stick before deflecting off blue-liner Matt Dumba's face and into the net behind Dubnyk.

"I definitely haven't scored one like that," said Jones. "It felt good to finally get one. It's been a little while, so hopefully it can lead to a little more offense from our line."

Flames defenseman Ladislav Smid left the game late in the first period with an upper-body injury and didn't return.

NOTES: The Flames received bad news on two fronts Wednesday. The team announced that G Karri Ramo will miss the remainder of the season with a torn ACL and meniscus damage he sustained last Thursday during a game in San Jose against the Sharks, while NHL commissioner Gary Bettman upheld a 20-game suspension for D Dennis Wideman, who cross-checked a linesman to the ice during a Jan. 27 home game against the Nashville Predators. ... Flames D Kris Russell missed his second consecutive game with a lower-body injury, while C Lance Bouma and LW Brandon Bollig were also scratched. ... Minnesota scratched LW Chris Porter, G Niklas Backstrom and D Marco Scandella. ... The Wild wrap up their three-game road trip Thursday in Edmonton against the Oilers, while the Flames finish up their three-game homestand Friday against the Vancouver Canucks.
Top Game Performances
 
Minnesota   Calgary
Erik Haula 2 Points T.J. Brodie 2
Erik Haula 1 Goals Mikael Backlund 1
Nino Niederreiter 2 Assists T.J. Brodie 2
Mikko Koivu 1 Power Play Goals Mikael Backlund 1
Jason Zucker 1 Short Handed Goals N/A
Devan Dubnyk .893 Save Percentage Jonas Hiller .826
Devan Dubnyk 25 Saves Jonas Hiller 19
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
Minnesota 24 5 1-3 4-5 10 29
Calgary 28 3 1-5 2-3 6 30
Upcoming Games
  • Calgary will play their next game at home against Vancouver. The Flames have a W/L % of .480 after a win and .419 after a loss.
  • Minnesota will play their next game on the road against Edmonton. The Wild have a W/L % of .520 after a win and .375 after a loss.