S.J.’s playoff hopes suffer another blow

ST. PAUL, Minn. — Nick Bonino had a goal and an assist, Cam Talbot made 20 saves and the Minnesota Wild held on to defeat the Sharks 32 on Friday night.

Mats Zuccarello and Zach Parise also scored for the Wild, who won their second straight.

Tomas Hertl and Evander Kane scored and Martin Jones stopped 15 of 18 shots for the Sharks, whose fourth consecutive loss left them four points out of a playoff position.

The Sharks pulled goalie Martin Jones for an extra man with more than 90 seconds left, but the Wild defense held on for the win.

“Real frustrating,” San Jose coach Bob Boughner said. “I think we were looking for that response game after our last couple games, and we got it. We were playing hard and we did a lot of great things out there.”

San Jose struck first on a strong individual effort by Hertl less than four minutes into the game. Hertl gathered the puck, played it off the sideboards to himself at center ice

and skated in alone, as Talbot let a wrist shot slip past him for Hertl’s 13th goal of the season.

The Wild tied it midway through the period on Bonino’s unassisted goal. He pounced on a loose puck in the high slot and fired a quick shot that beat a screened Jones. Bonino has five points in his past two games.

Minnesota took a 21 lead early in the second. After Victor Rask won a faceoff in San Jose’s zone, the puck drifted over to Zuccarello, who beat Jones for his ninth goal of the season and third in two games.

Just over a minute later, Parise redirected a feed from Matt Dumba at the goalmouth to give the Wild a 31 lead. It was Parise’s third goal in four games and sixth of the year. Bonino

picked up an assist on the play.

The Sharks trimmed their deficit to one when Evander Kane scored a shorthanded goal at 13:43 of the third period.

Talbot took it from there for Minnesota.

“Goaltending certainly has been a key factor all season for us,” Wild coach Dean Evason said. “Games that we haven’t been real good, it’s allowed us to get into games, picked up us. It’s been a real positive for us.”

Stacy Bengs / Associated Press Minnesota goalie Cam Talbot turns aside a thirdperiod shot by the Sharks’ Kevin Labanc. Talbot had 20 saves as the Wild dealt San Jose its fourth consecutive loss.