Niklas Backstrom stopped 27 shots for his second shutout of the season, and Devin Setoguchi scored the game’s only goal with 2:31 left to give the Minnesota Wild a 1-0 win over the Colorado Avalanche on Thursday night.
Backstrom earned his 24th NHL shutout and the Wild’s third this season in 19 games. It was his first home blanking since Feb. 1, 2011, against Los Angeles.
Minnesota has won three straight and eight of 10.
Dany Heatley took the initial shot that led to Setoguchi’s goal. The puck deflected off Colorado defenseman Erik Johnson right to Setoguchi, who scored his sixth of the season and second in two games.
Jean-Sebastien Giguere made 17 saves for the Avalanche, who have lost three straight and four of five.
NOTES: Minnesota Lynx All-Star guard Lindsay Whalen, fresh off the first WNBA championship of her eight-year career, made the customary “Let’s Play Hockey” call before the game. ... Avs RW Brandon Yip made his season debut after recovering from a broken forearm. ... RW Chuck Kobasew, who signed a two-year deal with Colorado after playing most of the last two seasons with the Wild, was scratched for the first time this season. ... Minnesota D Kris Fredheim made his NHL debut and played 10 minutes. He was called up from Houston of the AHL on Wednesday. ... Wild D Nick Schultz played in his Wild-record 700th game.
