Praiseworthy: Kirill Kaprizov scores twice as Wild roll past Golden Knights 5-2

Kirill Kaprizov was oozing praise for his linemate Joel Eriksson Ek, commending the Wild’s top center for handling faceoffs, playing at the front of the net and winning puck battles, before he put a lid on the compliments.

“He go home now and don’t sleep,” Kaprizov said. “Think about this too much maybe.”

But the Wild have reason to brag about Eriksson Ek and the rest of their first line.

The chasm between their stars and the Golden Knights’ continued to grow in Game 3, with Kaprizov and Matt Boldy once again dominating alongside Eriksson Ek to lead the Wild to a 5-2 victory over the Vegas Golden Knights on Thursday at Xcel Energy Center and 2-1 advantage in the best-of-seven series.

Game 4 is Saturday afternoon back in St. Paul.

“It always feel good when you win games,” Kaprizov said. “We don’t care who score, who has how many points or whatever. You just want to win games.”

Kaprizov scored twice on the power play, Boldy capitalized for a third straight game — fourth including the regular-season finale — while also picking up an assist, and Eriksson Ek was exemplary in the nitty gritty: He helped the Wild go a perfect on the penalty kill and led the game in faceoff wins all while going head-to-head with Vegas’ No. 1 center Jack Eichel, who is pointless in the series.

Same with Eichel’s linemates, Ivan Barbashev and team captain Mark Stone.

As dynamic as Kaprizov and Boldy have been — the two are tied for the Stanley Cup lead in goals with four apiece and Kaprizov is tied for first in points at seven — that their takeover has come while outplaying the Golden Knights’ top line isn’t just impressive: It’s why the Wild have won twice in a row.

“How hard they work is really setting the standard for the whole team,” Eriksson Ek said. “Probably the two hardest working guys every night, making plays and then being on those pucks. It’s fun, for sure.”

After a rare Vegas mishap for too many men, Kaprizov circled half the offensive zone before uncorking a wrist shot from the middle 3 minutes, 13 seconds into the first period for the Wild’s first goal on the power play in the series. Zeev Buium’s assist was the rookie defenseman’s first point in the NHL during his home debut.

The fourth line doubled the Wild’s lead on Marco Rossi’s first career playoff goal as he beat Vegas goalie Adin Hill. While on the forecheck, Yakov Trenin fed the puck to Rossi in front at 6:51 for the put back; his shot was altered by the stick of Vegas defenseman Shea Theodore.

Rossi was demoted to the fourth line ahead of Game 2 and although coach John Hynes mentioned the team would look at changing that grouping, he kept the trio intact, and they delivered what Hynes was hoping to achieve by combining Rossi’s skill with the muscle of Trenin and Brazeau.

“It doesn’t matter where a coach puts me,” Rossi said. “You want to be the best out there and try to help the team to win.”

Before the first ended, Vegas responded on a shot from the top of the right circle by Alex Pietrangelo at 10:48 that slid five-hole on Wild goalie Filip Gustavsson — what Gustavsson described as a soft goal.

The Golden Knights continued to press in the second period but the Wild added goals from — you guessed it — Boldy and Kaprizov.

In the latest show of the winger’s budding power forward style, Boldy pried the puck off Vegas’ Noah Hanifin behind the net and skated to the front for a rising shot at 11:05.

Then with two seconds to go, Kaprizov connected on a redirect at the back post during a marathon, 2 minute, 6-second shift on the power play for the winger after Ryan Hartman checked the clock before throwing the puck toward the crease. It banked in off Kaprizov’s chest.

“The fans helped him on that one, everyone was yelling, ‘Shoot it,’” Hynes said. “Good things happen when you put the puck to the net.”

The 2-for-4 Wild power play did give up a shorthander 11:34 into the third period on a two-on-one break for the Golden Knights’ Reilly Smith, but the Wild went 4-for-4 down a player — including back-to-back penalty kills late in regulation.

Gustavsson made nine of his 30 saves shorthanded, Marcus Foligno added a 4-on-6 empty-netter with 1:33 to go, and Vegas’ best players remained idle.

“That’s our whole team just playing tight together,” Eriksson Ek said, “just trying to take time and space away from them and just defending well as a team, as five guys and a goalie.”

Not only are they not producing, but Barbashev, Eichel and Stone aren’t getting many looks.

At 5-on-5, they’re getting outshot 17-12 and out-chanced 19-9.

When Kaprizov, Eriksson Ek and Boldy are on the ice at 5-on-5, shots (21-13) and chances (26-11) are in the Wild’s favor.

“It’s the neutral zone,” said Gustavsson, whose counterpart Hill (17 saves) was replaced after two periods by Akira Schmid (nine stops). “Eichel is a fast guy and Stone and those guys are very skilled through the neutral zone, and I feel like we have a good gap on them there and disturbing their puck touch there with stick on puck and their entries. We’re doing a good job there.”

Kaprizov and Boldy joined Marian Gaborik as the only other Wild players to post multiple points in three straight playoff games, and they’re the first duo in the NHL to start the postseason on such a streak since 2000.

Boldy’s goal streak is one game shy of Mikko Koivu’s franchise record set in 2008.

“That breakaway pass the other night, that’s special,” Golden Knights coach Bruce Cassidy said. “But that’s how pairs work sometimes, and they’ve got the guy in the middle who does a lot of the dirty work. So, it’s a good combination of players there for that line, and we’ve got to find a way to slow them down.”

Vegas’ ability to answer back in the series might depend on it.

“Those guys bring it every night, whether the puck is going in or not,” Wild defenseman Brock Faber said. “Just their work ethic on the ice, they’re the hardest workers and the most skilled players. So, when you got two guys who have both those traits, they’re hard to stop and we’re hard to beat.

“It’s definitely fun to watch those guys.‘’