Minnesota
Nick Bjugstad has hat trick against hometown team, Coyotes rout Wild 6-0
MINNEAPOLIS — Nick Bjugstad had his second career hat trick, Connor Ingram made 38 saves for his fifth shutout of the season and the Arizona Coyotes routed the Minnesota Wild 6-0 on Saturday night.
Bjugstad, the Minneapolis native who starred at the University of Minnesota, snapped a 16-game goal drought. He had two goals in the first period and completed the hat trick in the second with his ninth goal of the season.
“It felt good, but it had been a while since I’d scored, so that first one felt really good,” Bjugstad said. “Sometimes it just goes in for you. This was one of those nights. I’m grateful for my linemates. We had good sustained offensive-zone time, and usually if you’re getting shots, you’ll get chances to score.”
Clayton Keller had two goals and an assist, and Alexander Kerfoot also scored for Arizona. Keller has goals in three straight games and has 19 points in 24 career games against the Wild. The Coyotes had lost four of five, all at home.
Forward Kirill Kaprizov and goalie Filip Gustavsson returned from injuries for Minnesota, but the Wild lost for the eighth time in nine games. They have been outscored 21-5 in losing four straight.
As a result, the players held a lengthy closed-door meeting before letting in reporters after the game.
“It’s embarrassing to lose like that at home,” forward Mats Zuccarello said. “I think everyone, every single guy in here feels the same way. It’s just not good enough. Giving too easy (of) goals. We battled hard, we create chances, but it’s too easy for them to score. We’re not playing near good enough.”
Kaprizov, the team’s scoring leader with 34 points, missed seven games because of an upper-body injury and Gustavsson, the top netminder, missed seven games with a lower-body injury.
Gustavsson struggled in his return as did a defense still missing its top two defensemen in Jared Spurgeon and Jonas Brodin. Gustavsson allowed five goals on 18 shots before being pulled midway through the second period for Marc-Andre Fleury. Fleury stopped 14 of 15 shots faced.
“For my part, of course the timing’s a little off, the game is way quicker than in practice, and getting that timing right is hard,” Gustavsson said. “I tried my best; I wasn’t good enough today. That’s what happens.”
The Wild surged with 11 wins in 14 games after John Hynes replaced Dean Evason as head coach, but are 1-7-1 in their last nine games, while injuries have played a part.
On the first game of a three-game trip, Arizona jumped on Minnesota quickly. Kerfoot scored five minutes in and the Coyotes scored three times in the first period. Two of the goals were on the power play.
“I think that’s the urgency we had,” Arizona coach Andre Tourigny said. “I think the boys had the right mindset. That was a really good start. After the first period, I think we played the right way. We had urgency defensively. We’re stingy defensively. I think we played a solid three periods.”
Arizona was 2 of 3 on the power play. Minnesota’s penalty kill entered the day 30th in the NHL and 32nd at home.
UP NEXT
Coyotes: At Calgary on Tuesday night.
Wild: Host the New York Islanders on Monday night.
Minnesota
Wolves assistant Micah Tori hired as Trailer Blazers head coach
The Portland Trail Blazers picked Minnesota Timberwolves assistant Micah Nori as their next head coach on Tuesday, after making the playoffs for the first time in five years under the direction of interim coach Tiago Splitter.
Nori, who spent the past five seasons with the Timberwolves, has interviewed for multiple head coach vacancies, including the Chicago Bulls earlier this month, the New York Knicks last year, and the Los Angeles Lakers in 2024.
Nori, 52, was the lead assistant under Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch while the club made the playoffs each season, won five series, and reached the Western Conference finals in 2023 and 2024. Nori, who began his NBA career in 1998 as a scout with the Toronto Raptors, has also been an assistant for the Raptors, the Sacramento Kings, the Denver Nuggets, and the Detroit Pistons. His son, Dante, is a minor league baseball player in the Philadelphia Phillies organization.
Splitter, who was hired last week as head coach of the Chicago Bulls, was promoted from assistant to interim coach when then-head coach Chauncey Billups was arrested in October in a federal takedown of a sprawling gambling operation. Billups has pleaded not guilty to charges of wire fraud and money laundering.
The Blazers went 42-40 with a five-game loss to NBA finalist San Antonio in the first round of the playoffs, the first postseason appearance and first time they finished with a winning record in five years.
The news comes a day after the Wolves reportedly traded three-time All-Star Julius Randle to the Brooklyn Nets in a three-team trade that sends Nic Claxton to the Chicago Bulls.
Minnesota
Report: Timberwolves trade Julius Randle to Brooklyn Nets as part of 3-team deal
The Minnesota Timberwolves are reportedly trading three-time All-Star Julius Randle to the Brooklyn Nets in a three-team trade that sends Nic Claxton to the Chicago Bulls.
Minnesota is sending the 28th pick to the Nets and will be receiving the No. 33 pick that will be made in the second round on Wednesday night, according to a person who spoke to the Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the deal has not received the required approvals from the league office.
For Minnesota, the trade opens up a slew of financial possibilities. It creates a $33 million trade exception, plus gives the Timberwolves room they can use to re-sign Ayo Dosunmu and target more players in free agency.
Randle, a three-time All-Star, will be moving to his fifth team after stints with New York, the Los Angeles Lakers, New Orleans and the Timberwolves. He averaged 21.1 points this past season, though shot just 39% from the field and 24% from 3-point range in Minnesota’s 12 playoff contests.
Claxton just finished his seventh NBA season, all with Brooklyn. He averaged 11.7 points this past season.
The 2026 NBA Draft begins Tuesday night.
Minnesota
Keeping the ‘Classic’ Minnesota Flag – Minnesota Senate Republicans
At Senator Westrom’s St. Paul office, visitors are greeted by the classic Minnesota state flag, which the DFL leaders should not have taken away from Minnesotans.
However, local communities have the authority to keep flying it, like many have done, and Senator Westrom encourages communities interested in keeping it to do so.
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