Devils 3, Wild 1
Tuomo Ruutu and Mike Cammalleri scored just over four minutes apart in the second period as host New Jersey halted its four-game losing streak.
Travis Zajac added an empty-net tally and Cory Schneider, pulled from two of his previous three starts, turned aside 23 shots as the Devils won for the fourth time in 13 games. Jaromir Jagr collected a pair of assists to give him 1,767 points, four shy of tying Marcel Dionne for fifth place on the all-time list.
Ex-Devil Ryan Carter scored a short-handed goal for Minnesota, which absorbed its fourth straight defeat in the finale of a three-game road trip. Darcy Kuemper made 20 saves for the Wild, who were foiled on four power-play opportunities to drop to 2-for-44 - and 0-for-29 on the road.
New Jersey went ahead at the 5:42 mark of the second period, when Ruutu redirected a shot from the left point by defenseman Seth Helgeson, who was making his NHL debut. The Devils doubled the lead at 9:53 as Cammalleri knocked home the rebound of Jagr's shot.
The Devils had a chance to take a commanding lead when they went on a four-minute power play early in the third, but Carter cut the deficit in half with a sharp-angle goal from the left-wing boards. Minnesota pressed for the equalizer before Zajac settled it during a power play with 38 seconds remaining.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Jagr also notched his 1,058th and 1,059th assists, putting him four behind Steve Yzerman for seventh all-time. ... Carter's tally was the third short-hander scored by the Wild - one more than they have scored on the power play - and first allowed by New Jersey. ... With Devils captain Bryce Salvador (lower body) sitting out, the team called up Helgeson from Albany of the American Hockey League. ... The game was officiated by a three-man crew due to an illness to referee Steve Miller.