St. Paul, MN (Sports Network) - Kyle Brodziak had a goal and two assists, as the Minnesota Wild handled the Anaheim Ducks, 5-1, at Xcel Energy Center. Mikko Koivu, Matt Cullen, Eric Nystrom and Martin Havlat also lit the lamp for the Wild, who snapped a two-game skid. Niklas Backstrom made 29 saves. "We definitely deserve it [the win] with the way we've been playing the last couple games," Wild forward Cal Clutterbuck said. "You keep working hard and those things will come through for you."
Minnesota defenseman Marek Zidlicky returned to the lineup after missing the last 21 games with a shoulder injury. It was not all good news for the Wild, as Koivu left the game in the first period with a hand injury after blocking a shot. Corey Perry scored the lone goal for the Ducks, who have dropped two in a row since a four-game winning streak.
Curtis McElhinney stopped 21-of-26 shots for Anaheim, which had won six straight on the road. The Ducks drew first blood at the 3:30 mark of the first on Perry's tip-in. Anaheim's lone lead of the game didn't last long, as Koivu tied things up at 5:01. The Wild got a short-handed goal from Cullen with 4:53 remaining to make it a 2-1 game. Cullen left the penalty box to end a 5-on-3, gathered a pass from Kyle Brodziak and went in on a breakaway.
"You get a 1-0 lead and then before you know it you turn around and you're looking at 2-1," McElhinney said. Nystrom's power-play goal at the 13:32 mark of the second gave Minnesota a 3-1 lead. Just 27 seconds later, Brodziak batted the puck out of the air and into the net for a three-goal cushion. Havlat made it 5-1 on a power play at the 16:49 mark of the third.
Minnesota leads the season series with Anaheim, 2-1...Perry has five goals and 10 assists over a seven-game point streak...Ducks forward Teemu Selanne saw a five-game point streak come to an end...Anaheim made a depth move on Thursday, acquiring forward Jarkko Ruutu from the Ottawa Senators in exchange for a sixth-round pick in the 2011 draft...Minnesota started a three-game homestand on Friday.
For more information on tonight's game, be sure tor read Anaheim Calling.