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.
(FOX 9) – Minnesota is joining a legal challenge targeting the largest media merger in history, arguing that it would ultimately be a bad deal for customers.
AG Ellison joins lawsuit to block Warner Bros.-Paramount merger
What we know:
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison has joined a coalition of 11 other attorneys general, filing a lawsuit to stop the $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery by Paramount Skydance Corporation.
The suit alleges the merger would violate antitrust laws by creating a media conglomerate that would control nearly one-third of all U.S.-based theatrical movies.
The combined company would control about 27% of the market for wide-release theatrical films and basic cable channels. Only three distributors would control 75% of wide-release films, and four — including Disney, Universal, and Sony — would control 86%, the lawsuit alleges.
The lawsuit also points out that Warner Bros. is currently the second largest and Paramount the third largest in licensing basic cable channels, and together they would control 27% of that market. The merger would combine two of Hollywood’s five major film distributors and two of the five major basic cable companies, eliminating competition and harming movie theaters, cable distributors and consumers.
What they’re saying:
“Minnesotans deserve a fair and competitive marketplace, not one where a handful of giant corporations control what we watch, what we pay, and what choices we have,” AG Ellison said in a statement. “This would be the largest merger in media and entertainment history. It will raise prices, limit innovation, and reduce the variety of voices in media and entertainment. I’m taking action because this goes too far in consolidating power with a few at the expense of the public.”
What’s next:
The coalition has asked Warner Bros. and Paramount not to close the merger until after the judicial process concludes. If the companies refuse, the attorneys general plan to file a temporary restraining order to halt the deal.
The Source: Information provided in a statement from the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office.
WASHINGTON (7News) — The debate over the National Guard presence in the nation’s capital is intensifying after the Pentagon told 7News the Guard mission connected to President Donald Trump’s crime initiative could continue through Inauguration Day 2029 unless it is ended sooner by the president.
The development comes as one governor has decided to withdraw troops from Washington, while D.C. leaders are urging other states to do the same.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz is pulling his state’s National Guard members out of the District earlier than originally planned.
Walz’s office says its mission to support America 250 celebrations has concluded. The decision follows concerns about whether some Guard members were being used beyond the security mission tied to those events.
RELATED | Pentagon to keep National Guard activated in D.C. through Inauguration Day 2029
The D.C. Council is also pressing other states to reconsider their deployments.
All 13 councilmembers signed letters to the governors of Michigan and the U.S. Virgin Islands asking them to withdraw their National Guard troops from the District. Council leaders argue those service members were deployed to support the nation’s 250th anniversary events—not a broader federal public safety mission.
“They’re just doing their job, but it still hurts the city. It hurts our image. It creates resentment,” D.C. Council Chairman Phil Mendelson said.
SEE ALSO | 13-year-old boy shot and killed in Northeast DC home
“The letters were sent to two states that we were surprised when they decided to send the guard. Now, they sent the guard, as I understand it, to support the America 250 events. So it would be nice if they just kind of go back home,” Mendelson added.
According to the Joint Task Force overseeing the deployment, more than 5,100 National Guard members are currently assigned to the District, including troops supporting Freedom 250 events and other summer activities.
While Minnesota is ending its deployment, governors in states including Georgia and Mississippi have said their Guard members will remain in Washington to support the president’s mission.
A road rage-related shooting caused a southern Twin Cities metro highway to shut down for several hours Saturday evening.
The Minnesota State Patrol and the Eagan Police Department responded to a report of a road rage incident on northbound Interstate 35E near Deerwood Drive around 5:16 p.m., according to Eagan police.
Police say one of the drivers fired multiple rounds at another vehicle. While no one was injured, the victim’s vehicle was struck by gunfire and sustained damage.
The Eagan Police Department is seeking the public’s assistance in identifying the suspect vehicle and driver involved. Investigators are looking for a white 2010-2014 Ford F-150. The truck is described as having four doors, black door handles, gray rocker panels, a black tonneau cover and visible rust around the driver’s side rear wheel well/fender. The suspect is described as a White man with long, dark hair.
Anyone with information about the incident or the driver is asked to contact the Eagan Police Department tip line at 651-675-5799 or email the department at eaganpd@eaganmn.gov.
I-35E reopened to traffic around 8:10 p.m. Saturday.
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