Squaring off with nearly identical records entering Wednesday’s contest, the Toronto Maple Leafs were presented with a key opportunity to get out of a rut against a quality Minnesota Wild team, with a four-game road trip on the horizon before the 4 Nations Face-Off break.

Jared Spurgeon and Marat Khusnutdinov scored in the first period, Filip Gustavsson stopped 31 shots, and the Minnesota Wild beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-1 on Wednesday night. Marcus Foligno added an empty-netter in the final minute as Minnesota won its second straight to improve to 3-5-0 in their last eight games.

Toronto Maple Leafs captain Auston Matthews addressed concerns regarding the significant decline in the team's offensive production following their third consecutive loss, a 3-1 defeat to the Minnesot

Jared Spurgeon scored what turned out to be the winning goal in the first period and the visiting Minnesota Wild went on to defeat the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-1 on Wednesday night.

Filip Gustavsson made 31 saves as the Minnesota Wild edged Toronto 3-1 on Wednesday, sending the Maple Leafs to a third straight regulation loss.

Filip Gustavsson made 31 saves as the Minnesota Wild edged Toronto 3-1 on Wednesday, sending the Maple Leafs to a third straight regulation loss.

The Toronto Maple Leafs dropped a 3-1 decision against the Minnesota Wild at the Scotiabank Arena on Wednesday night.

Filip Gustavsson made 31 saves as the Minnesota Wild edged Toronto 3-1 on Wednesday, sending the Maple Leafs to a third straight regulation loss.

The Wild survived without Kirill Kaprizov the first time, and they can do it again. That’s the message they sent Wednesday when they upended the Maple Leafs 3-1 at Scotiabank Arena to kick off Kaprizov’s second hiatus with a statement victory.

Wild coach John Hynes sent a message to his team after a relatively lifeless home loss last Saturday. Hynes put two of his regulars – forward Yakov Trenin and defenseman Declan Chisholm – in street clothes for a game in Chicago on Sunday.

The Minnesota Wild survived without Kirill Kaprizov the first time, and they can do it again. That’s the message they sent Wednesday, when they upended the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-1 at Scotiabank Arena to kick off Kaprizov’s second hiatus with their most convincing victory in weeks.

Wild 3, Maple Leafs 1