Detroit Lakes, MN (KDLM) – The Minnesota Wild opened the 2026-27 season with a win on the road Thursday night, beating the Nashville Predators 3-1 in the season opener for both teams.
Nick Foligno scored the first goal of the season, burying a Michael McCarron rebound in the first period, and newcomer Blake Coleman widened the lead to 2-0 on the power play 4 minutes later. The goal came in Coleman’s team debut.
Roman Josi scored the lone goal for Nashville in the second period, when penalties hurt the Wild and opened the door for the Predators. Minnesota got that goal back early in the third. Quinn Hughes handled the puck near the blue line and snapped a wrist shot, which Kirill Kaprizov redirected past Juuse Saros to make it 3-1. Hughes logged a team-high 27:30 of ice time in the win.
Wild goaltender Jesper Wallstedt stopped 19 of 20 shots to earn the victory. Minnesota outshot Nashville 30-20, went one of four on the power play, and killed all four Nashville power plays.
The Wild face a road-heavy start, with 21 of their first 31 games away from home. Minnesota’s home opener is Saturday, October 3rd, against the Boston Bruins at Grand Casino Arena. Puck drop is 7:00 p.m.
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