The goal that pushed the Minnesota Wild past the Blue Jackets in a 2-1 win Oct. 18 at Grand Casino Arena was shot into an opening roughly the size of a basketball above goalie Cam Talbot's shoulder during a power play in the second period.
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The guy who sent it there, Kirill Kaprizov, leads the NHL with 10 goals in nine games and makes $17 million a season. There wasn't much Talbot could've done, even with an unobstructed view of Kaprizov's shot, but the veteran backstop wore it anyway.
"Yeah, I think I gave him a little bit too much [to shoot at]," Talbot said. "He put it in a great spot, but the other four guys are doing their job. That's my guy. I've got to make that save."
Talbot's answer plus his impressive ability to remain solid into his upper 30s is how he became the first goalie in NHL history to play and win games for nine separate franchises during his Blue Jackets debut Oct. 9 in a victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins. He was the least of the Jackets' concerns in St. Paul, Minnesota, where the Wild forced him to make 32 saves to keep it a one-goal differential.

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