Wild’s reloaded top line comes with a coattail: A second line that meshes nicely

ST. LOUIS – As dominant as they were — and they were superb, one of the best lines in hockey — the Wild didn’t play Kirill Kaprizov, Joel Eriksson Ek and Matt Boldy together to start the season.

Why?

Because they couldn’t be a one-line team.

They were last season, when Kaprizov, Eriksson Ek and Boldy were a juggernaut in the second half, the three responsible for almost half the goals the Wild racked up (49 of 102) after the All-Star break, and the Wild still missed the playoffs.

But with Mats Zuccarello out injured for the next few weeks, the Wild needed to load up their top line with their best options, a reunion tour that kicked off on Tuesday at St. Louis.

And if that game is any indication of what to expect while Zuccarello is on the mend, the Wild will have better depth this go-round.

The second line featuring Marcus Johansson, Marco Rossi and Ryan Hartman stepped up, scoring the first goal and helping create the game-winner in a 4-2 victory over the Blues that showcased the trio’s budding chemistry.

“That’s what we needed from them,” coach John Hynes said. “They obviously all have a high skill level, but I thought that they played with speed. They worked as a three-man unit. I thought they moved the puck well.

“They were competitive on the puck in the offensive zone, and that allowed them to be able to help us produce.”

This was the first time Johansson, Rossi and Hartman logged regular shifts together this season, but they very much looked on the same page.

Take their first goal, a heads-up pass by Rossi, who fed Hartman as he was breaking into the offensive zone before he uncorked a five-hole shot that trickled behind goaltender Jordan Binnington and into the St. Louis net to give the Wild a 1-0 lead in the first period.

Before handing off to Hartman, Rossi spun off pressure and lifted the stick of the Blues’ Dylan Holloway to snag the puck in the neutral zone.

“I saw [Brock Faber] at the back of me, and I saw the other forward coming in front of me,” Rossi said. “I should probably check first if there was someone coming. So, I had to stick-lift and just pass it to Hartzy.”

Rossi’s 10 assists are second on the team, trailing only Kaprizov’s 20, and he’s third in points with 15, but the center’s playmaking ability isn’t all he offers the line.

“He’s strong,” said Hartman, who’s at right wing but can also play center. “He battles. There were a lot of one-on-one battles this training camp, and I went against him a couple times, and he’s strong. He’s like a little pit bull in there.

“He’s got skill. He can score goals. He can make really strong plays. He’ll go to the net. The goalie might be looking over him a little bit, but he’s there: He’s creating chaos in there.”

Add in Johansson’s smooth skating and vision alongside Hartman’s grit and shot, as evidenced by the 74 goals he’s accrued since 2021-22 for the fourth-most on the Wild in that time behind only Kaprizov, Boldy and Eriksson Ek, and the Wild’s new-look second line brings plenty to the table.

“[Hartman’s] shown over the course of a while now in the offensive zone he gets to the net front,” Hynes said. “He’s a real competitive guy, and he’s playing competitive in those areas of the ice, and that’s what you need. When you have a guy like Marco and Johansson where they’re good-skating, open-ice players, when Hartzy’s moving his feet to keep the pace with those guys and then he competes in hard areas, it complements them.”

And the Wild.

As expected, Kaprizov, Eriksson Ek and Boldy made an impact, with Kaprizov scoring the first go-ahead goal in the third period to break a 1-1 tie with a nifty deflection while his back was toward the net.

He also nixed St. Louis’ comeback attempt, draining an empty-netter when Binnington was pulled for an extra attacker late in the third period.

But in between those two plays, the Johansson, Rossi and Hartman line was toiling in the offensive zone to set up defenseman Jonas Brodin for the eventual game-winner in a performance that flattered more than just the Wild’s top players.

“They’re doing a good job,” Brodin said. “I feel like every line has been going really good lately. We’re all connected as a five-man unit, so that’s nice. But, yeah, those guys have been really good.”

Today, 8 p.m., Rogers Place

TV; radio: FanDuel Sports Network North Plus; 100.3 FM

Oilers update: A Stanley Cup favorite coming into the season, Edmonton hasn’t lived up to the hype so far. The Oilers have won as many games (10) as they’ve lost (eight in regulation, two in overtime). They just finished up an Eastern Canada road trip in which they fell in overtime to Toronto and were shut out by Montreal before rebounding on Tuesday night against Ottawa. Their stars, though, are delivering. RW Leon Draisaitl is tied for second in the NHL in goals with 14, while C Connor McDavid has 14 points in seven games since returning from an ankle injury.

Wild update: Marc-Andre Fleury will start in goal and W Devin Shore will make his Wild debut as Ben Jones comes out of the lineup.

Injuries: Wild RW Mats Zuccarello (lower body) is out. Oilers LW Evander Kane (hip) and D Darnell Nurse (upper body) are out. RW Viktor Arvidsson (undisclosed) and RW Zach Hyman (undisclosed) were injured Tuesday and won’t play tonight.