Dubnyk earns 3rd straight shutout as Wild beat Flyers
Devan Dubnyk posted his third straight shutout with 30 saves and Nino Niederreiter scored 12 seconds into the game for the Minnesota Wild in a 3-0 win against the Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday night.
Dubnyk's third shutout of the season stretched his scoreless streak to 195:05, breaking his mark of 183:16 set last season for the longest in team history. Dubnyk has stopped the last 103 shots he's faced.
Eric Staal and Jason Zucker each scored an empty-net goal for Minnesota, which has won a season-best three straight.
Brian Elliott made 17 saves for Philadelphia, shut out for an NHL-high fifth time this season.
Niederreiter broke Zucker's streak of six straight goals for the Wild, one shy of the NHL record for consecutive goals scored by a player for one team.
Staal won the initial faceoff and had possession of the puck on the left side when he centered to Niederreiter for a quick one-timer past Elliott. It was the fastest goal to start a game in franchise history at home.
Niederreiter, who was playing in his 400th NHL game, missed six games earlier this season with a high ankle sprain but has three goals and three assists in eight games since returning.
The Flyers have not scored in 156:09. Their top line of Claude Giroux, Sean Couturier and Jakub Voracek has combined for 23 goals - 46 percent of the team's total.
Philadelphia was 0 for 2 on the power play and has converted one time in its last 18 chances.
NOTES: Minnesota forward Charlie Coyle skated with the team for the first time since breaking his right fibula in a game on Oct. 12. Coyle has missed 14 games. . Philadelphia rookie C Nolan Patrick practiced with teammates as he eyes a potential return on Thursday. Patrick, the No. 2 overall pick in this year's entry draft, has missed eight games with a concussion. . Flyers D Mark Alt, a former high schoool and college player in Minnesota, was recalled from the AHL but was a healthy scratch. . Ex-Minnesota North Stars forward Jack Carlson, who has been declared cancer-free after battling the disease, did the traditional ''Let's play hockey'' before the game on Hockey Fights Cancer Awareness Night.
UP NEXT
Flyers: At the Winnipeg Jets on Thursday.
Wild: Host the Nashville Predators on Thursday.
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