Minnesota Gets 4 Goals from Eriksson Ek, Inches Toward Playoffs

The Minnesota Wild don't need to perfect for the remainder of the regular season, but a win like the one they had Wednesday night will go a long way towards solidifying their playoff chances.

The Wild seemingly had an easy game on Wednesday night against a young and struggling Sharks team at home in St. Paul.

That was not the case from the jump in what ended up being one of the more entertaining and higher scoring games of the season leaguewide.

Get our free mobile app

Three goals between the two teams in the first period set to the stage for a 6-goal second, 5-goal third, and overtime to top it all off.

Here's how the game ultimately came to an end as the Wild captured the win:

Per ESPN.com:

There were plenty of goals scored in the NHL on Wednesday night, and four players accounted for a bulk of them.

Minnesota's Joel Eriksson Ek and San Jose's Macklin Celebrini traded hat tricks in one contest, and Toronto's Matthew Knies and Philadelphia's Tyson Foerster also had three-goal games. The four three-goal efforts in the first three games of the five-game schedule were the most in the NHL since five hat tricks on April 1, 2023.

In the highest scoring game of the night, Eriksson Ek had a career-high four goals in his return from a lower-body injury in the Wild's 8-7 overtime victory over the Sharks. San Jose was led by Celebrini, a rookie star who finished with three goals and two assists.

Knies had his second hat trick of the season for the Maple Leafs in a 4-3 victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Foerster posted his first NHL hat trick for the Flyers in an 8-5 win over the New York Rangers.

The NHL had three three-hat trick days this season on Dec. 12, Dec. 27, Jan. 8 and April 5.

Source: ESPN.com and SPORTSNET on YouTube