Wild 4, Coyotes 3
GLENDALE, Ariz. -- The Minnesota Wild received the equivalent of a bye week two games into their season. After playing the St. Louis Blues on Saturday, the Wild rested and prepared for a game against the Arizona Coyotes five days later.
With the Coyotes coming off a game Wednesday in Anaheim, the disparity in early energy was glaring Thursday.
Minnesota scored two even-strength goals, a power-play goal and a short-handed goal to improve to 3-0-0 for the first time since 2008-09 with a 4-3 win over the Coyotes.
Arizona (3-1-0) was off to its best start since 2003-04. Minnesota's best start came in 2006-07, when it won its first six games.
The Wild held a 3-0 lead midway through the game before the Coyotes made the game competitive in the late going.
Minnesota goalie Devan Dubnyk, facing his former team, made 18 saves to post his 100th career win.
Defenseman Michael Stone scored in four-on-four play with 4:48 left in the third period to pull the Coyotes within 4-3. Right winger Shane Doan had an assist on the goal to pull within one point of 900 for his career. However, the Wild could not find an equalizer.
Wild left winger Zach Parise opened the scoring on a power play at 9:22 of the first period. Right winger Jason Pominville deflected defenseman Ryan Suter's shot from the point, and it caromed off the end boards onto Parise's backhand at the far post.
Parise's fifth goal of the season marked the first power-play goal the Coyotes allowed in 12 opponents' chances. It was also the first time Arizona trailed in a game all season.
Before that goal, Coyotes goalie Mike Smith went 104 minutes, five seconds without giving up a goal and 150:18 giving up just one goal.
Minnesota widened the lead less than a minute later when Coyotes defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson got caught pinching and left winger Kyle Chipchura got caught too deep trying to stymie the Wild breakout. That created an odd-man rush, and left winger Thomas Vanek beat Smith to the short side with a terrific shot just inside the junction of the crossbar and post for a 2-0 lead.
It was Vanek's 300th career goal.
Wild center Mikko Koivu widened the lead to 3-0 with a short-handed goal at 7:07 of the second period. Left winger Jason Zucker turned Ekman-Larsson inside out at the blue line and fed Koivu streaking to the net. Following the goal, Coyotes coach Dave Tippett pulled Smith to shake things up with his sluggish team, inserting backup Andres Lindback.
Coyotes left winger Anthony Duclair gave his team brief hope when he took a feed from Coyotes center Max Domi and scored his fourth goal in two games at 12:14 of the second period to cut the lead to 3-1.
Minnesota center Mikael Granlund answered 22 seconds later when both Coyotes defenseman got caught defending Pominville, who fed Parise. The right winger set up Granlund for a one-timer from the deep slot for a 4-1 lead.
Domi cut the margin to 4-2 with 9.4 seconds left in the second period. He knocked a puck out of the air, stickhandled around Wild defenseman Jared Spurgeon and beat Dubnyk through the five-hole.
Smith stopped 13 of the 17 shots he faced. Lindback made three saves.
NOTES: Wild G Devan Dubnyk returned to Arizona and started for the first time since the Coyotes traded him last January for a third-round pick. ... Coyotes G Mike Smith made his fourth consecutive start to open the season and played on the back end of a back-to-back set for the second time this season. ... RW Justin Fontaine, who missed Minnesota's first two games with an oblique injury, was in the lineup, replacing rookie Tyler Graovac, who went on injured reserve with a groin injury. Fontaine's return allowed Charlie Coyle to move back to center. ... The Wild were off since Saturday, when they defeated the St. Louis Blues 3-2 in their home opener. ... RW Anthony Duclair became the 16th Coyotes rookie to record a hat trick when he notched his first career hat trick Wednesday in Anaheim. He is the first Coyotes rookie to do so since Daniel Carcillo in 2008.