MINNEAPOLIS — What began as a scoring spree for the Minnesota Wild ended as a drilling for their defense.

The Los Angeles Kings rallied from a 3-0 deficit, scoring in the final minute of regulation to tie the game, before the Wild won in a shootout 4-3 on Monday night at Grand Casino Arena in backup goalie Jesper Wallstedt’s season debut.

Wallstedt, in just his sixth NHL start, made 31 saves before stopping all four shots he faced in the shootout.

How it happened

Marco Rossi had the lone goal in the shootout, in the fourth round, after Los Angeles erased a 3-0 lead the Wild had since the first period.

That’s when the Wild scored three power play goals, beginning with a wrister by captain Jared Spurgeon at 14 minutes, 4 seconds after a Marcus Johansson shot was blocked and the puck caromed right to Spurgeon.

Already on the power play, Kirill Kaprizov drew a hooking penalty to give the Wild a 5-on-3 advantage, and Kaprizov capitalized at 16:13 by flinging in a shot from the deep slot.

Only 20 seconds later, Matt Boldy converted on the remaining 5-on-4 setup, tucking the puck between the post and Kings goaltender Darcy Kuemper (23 saves).

Vladimir Tarasenko assisted on both goals, while Kaprizov and Boldy are up to seven points apiece as one of the highest-scoring duos in the NHL right now; only Colorado’s Nathan MacKinnon and Martin Necas (eight points each) have produced more.

Kaprizov, Boldy and Tarasenko, however, were denied in the shootout.

Overall, the Wild power play went 3 for 6 after contributing all the offense in the 7-4 loss to the Blue Jackets last Saturday.

Turning point

Former Wild forward Kevin Fiala started Los Angeles’ comeback 3:53 into the third period, on a bank shot off Wallstedt’s back.

By 6:20, Quinton Byfield’s finish on the power play (1 for 3) cut the Wild’s cushion to a single goal before Adrian Kempe extended the action when he pounced on a loose puck with 46 seconds left in the period amid a scramble in front of Wallstedt and with Kuemper on the bench for an extra Kings player.

Key stat

The Wild’s three power play goals came in 2:29 and tied for the second most in a single period in team history.

What it means

Eventually, the Wild will need to get their 5-on-5 offense going.

But this early in the season, any momentum is helpful. Plus, there’s never a bad time for the power play to get on a roll.

Defensively, the Wild weren’t as porous as they were during Columbus’ seven-goal splurge, but their collapse is concerning.

They weren’t as aggressive after the first period: The Kings outshot them 26-12 from the second period on, and the pressure caught up with them.

Up next

A five-game road trip starts Tuesday night at Dallas before the Wild decamp to the East Coast for a week.

The toughest test, though, is probably the first: Not only will the Stars be more rested, but they’re undefeated with wins against the Winnipeg Jets and Colorado Avalanche.

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