NHL Roundup: Wild Top Stars in OT as Playoff Races Heat Up

Vladimir Tarasenko scored 3:06 into overtime to give the Minnesota Wild a 2-1 victory over the Dallas Stars on Saturday afternoon in Saint Paul, Minnesota, in a matchup that served as a potential playoff preview for the Central Division rivals.

The win snapped a four-game home losing streak for the Wild, who improved to 2-1 against Dallas this season with one regular-season game remaining. Bobby Brink tied the score with a breakaway goal midway through the second period, assisted by defenseman Quinn Hughes, who also set up the winner. Goaltender Filip Gustavsson made 28 saves, including key stops during penalty kills in the third period, to earn the victory. For Dallas, Jason Robertson scored the lone goal on a first-period power play, assisted by Miro Heiskanen and Matt Duchene. Jake Oettinger stopped 26 shots in the loss. The Stars hold a five-point lead over Minnesota for second place in the Central Division.

The Wild played without leading scorer Kirill Kaprizov and top two-way center Joel Eriksson Ek, both sidelined by lower-body injuries and listed as day-to-day. Despite the absences, Minnesota demonstrated depth in securing its 15th overtime win of the season, the most in...