from Chip Scoggins of the Star Tribune,

The performance was a dud, to put it kindly. Sloppy mistakes, careless passing, no real focus.

The Wild coughed up turnover after turnover against Anaheim — one of the two worst teams in the NHL — in a textbook case of playing down to the competition. It was a moment ripe for a letdown loss earlier this month in the final push of the regular season.

Then the rookie sensation decided he'd had enough of that nonsense.

Kirill Kaprizov skated the puck up the wing in overtime, fired a shot from the circle, kept moving toward the goal, corralled his rebound in traffic and tapped in the game-winner. A piece of cake.

Just like that, overtime was finished after 17 seconds.

That singular play — and many others from the Thrill's rookie archive — helps explain why the Wild's playoff fate doesn't feel as hopeless as in previous years. The lineup finally has a true goal scorer, a guy who can make a play on his own in clutch moments.

Who needs puck luck when you have a superstar?

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