Dubnyk notches third straight shutout in Wild’s 3-0 victory
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Devan Dubnyk posted his third straight shutout with 30 saves and Nino Niederreiter scored 12 seconds into the game for the Minnesota Wild in a 3-0 win against the Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday night.
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Dubnyk’s third shutout of the season stretched his scoreless streak to 195:05, breaking his mark of 183:16 set last season for the longest in team history. Dubnyk has stopped the last 103 shots he’s faced.
Eric Staal and Jason Zucker each scored an empty-net goal for Minnesota, which has won a season-best three straight.
Brian Elliott made 17 saves for Philadelphia, shut out for an NHL-high fifth time this season.
Niederreiter broke Zucker’s streak of six straight goals for the Wild, one shy of the NHL record for consecutive goals scored by a player for one team.
Staal won the initial faceoff and had possession of the puck on the left side when he centered to Niederreiter for a quick one-timer past Elliott. It was the fastest goal to start a game in franchise history at home.
Niederreiter, who was playing in his 400th NHL game, missed six games earlier this season with a high ankle sprain but has three goals and three assists in eight games since returning.
The Flyers have not scored in 156:09. Their top line of Claude Giroux, Sean Couturier and Jakub Voracek has combined for 23 goals — 46 percent of the team’s total.
Philadelphia was 0 for 2 on the power play and has converted one time in its last 18 chances.
NOTES: Minnesota forward Charlie Coyle skated with the team for the first time since breaking his right fibula in a game on Oct. 12. Coyle has missed 14 games. . Philadelphia rookie C Nolan Patrick practiced with teammates as he eyes a potential return on Thursday. Patrick, the No. 2 overall pick in this year’s entry draft, has missed eight games with a concussion. . Flyers D Mark Alt, a former high schoool and college player in Minnesota, was recalled from the AHL but was a healthy scratch. . Ex-Minnesota North Stars forward Jack Carlson, who has been declared cancer-free after battling the disease, did the traditional “Let’s play hockey” before the game on Hockey Fights Cancer Awareness Night.
UP NEXT
Flyers: At the Winnipeg Jets on Thursday.
Wild: Host the Nashville Predators on Thursday.