Wild 3, Sharks 1
Staal with two goals (photo courtesy of Wild.com)
SAINT PAUL, Minn. — The Wild scored a pair of early goals and held off the Sharks in a meeting of two Western Conference powers.
Eric Staal scored twice and Zach Parise got things started in the first period for Minnesota, which moved back into first place in the Central Division, ahead of idle Chicago.
The Wild got 20 saves from Devan Dubnyk to win for the third time in their past four games. Staal added an empty net goal for the Wild with 1:49 to play.
San Jose, which leads the Pacific Division, got a goal from Melker Karlsson.