Filip Gustavsson makes 20 saves in the Wild's 4-0 victory over the Hurricanes

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Filip Gustavsson made 20 saves for his third shutout this season, Marco Rossi had four assists and the Minnesota Wild beat the Carolina Hurricanes 4-0 on Saturday night.

The Wild improved to 16-5-2 when scoring first this season as Mats Zuccarello beat Pyotr Kochetkov on a slap shot for a 1-0 lead with 6:57 left in the first period.

Zuccarello, who also assisted on Joel Eriksson Ek’s tip-in goal on the power play in the second period, added an empty net goal with 3:46 remaining. Matt Boldy also scored in the third.

The short-handed Wild won their third consecutive game despite missing leading scorer Kirill Kaprizov (sidelined for a fifth consecutive game by a lower-body injury) and captain Jared Spurgeon (out at least two weeks with a right leg injury).

Wild: Despite lacking its best players on offense (Kaprizov) and defense (Spurgeon), Minnesota improved to 25-11-4 with its fourth victory in five games. With 52 points, it has the third-best start through 40 games in franchise history.

Hurricanes: Carolina managed only one shot in the first 12 minutes, which included a four-minute power play.

The Hurricanes briefly were on the scoreboard with 5:01 left in the second period after Jalen Chatfield banked the puck off Minnesota’s Jonas Brodin and past Gustavsson. But the goal was disallowed because Carolina was ruled offsides after Minnesota coach John Hynes challenged the play.

Minnesota improved to 16-0-0 when leading after two periods.

The Wild will return home to play St. Louis on Tuesday night. The Hurricanes host Pittsburgh on Sunday night in the seventh of 14 back-to-back sets this season.

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl

Carolina Hurricanes' Jordan Staal (11) protests a call with an official during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Minnesota Wild in Raleigh, N.C., Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Karl DeBlaker)

Minnesota Wild goaltender Filip Gustavsson (32) blocks a shot of the Carolina Hurricanes during the second period of an NHL hockey game in Raleigh, N.C., Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Karl DeBlaker)

Minnesota Wild's Marco Rossi (23) controls the puck with Carolina Hurricanes' Jalen Chatfield (5) nearby during the first period of an NHL hockey game in Raleigh, N.C., Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Karl DeBlaker)

Carolina Hurricanes' Jack Drury (18) is taken down by Minnesota Wild's Jon Merrill (4) in front of Wild goaltender Filip Gustavsson, left, during the first period of an NHL hockey game in Raleigh, N.C., Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Karl DeBlaker)

Minnesota Wild players celebrate after a goal against the Carolina Hurricanes during the first period of an NHL hockey game in Raleigh, N.C., Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Karl DeBlaker)

Minnesota Wild's Yakov Trenin (13) shoots the puck past Carolina Hurricanes' Brent Burns (8) during the first period of an NHL hockey game in Raleigh, N.C., Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Karl DeBlaker)

The Minnesota Wild celebrate a goal during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Carolina Hurricanes in Raleigh, N.C., Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Karl DeBlaker)

Minnesota Wild goaltender Filip Gustavsson (32) catches the puck between teammate Travis Dermott (44) and Carolina Hurricanes' Jesperi Kotkaniemi (82) during the second period of an NHL hockey game in Raleigh, N.C., Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Karl DeBlaker)

Minnesota Wild goaltender Filip Gustavsson (32) watches the puck against the Carolina Hurricanes during the second period of an NHL hockey game in Raleigh, N.C., Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Karl DeBlaker)

Carolina Hurricanes' Andrei Svechnikov (37) chases the puck between Minnesota Wild's Jonas Brodin (25) and goaltender Filip Gustavsson (32) during the first period of an NHL hockey game in Raleigh, N.C., Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Karl DeBlaker)

The NFL's regular season is over after an eventful Week 18 that saw the Detroit Lions capture the No. 1 seed in the NFC while the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Denver Broncos secured their places in the postseason field.

The two-time defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs and star quarterback Patrick Mahomes are still a Super Bowl favorite despite losing to the Broncos on Sunday. The Chiefs played mostly backups in the regular-season finale after they had already clinched the No. 1 seed in the AFC bracket.

Over in the NFC, the Lions beat the Minnesota Vikings 31-9 to grab the top seed, securing homefield advantage until the Super Bowl. The Vikings tumbled all the way to the No. 5 seed with the loss.

Here are some more things to watch as the postseason begins:

The 14-team bracket enters its fifth season after debuting during the 2020 season. Seven teams advance to the postseason from both the AFC and the NFC.

The four division winners in each conference earn the top four seeds, ranked by their records. The last three teams are all wild-card selections, also ranked by record.

The format means the No. 1 seed in each conference is very important because it guarantees a wild card-round bye and homefield advantage until the Super Bowl. For the other 12 teams in the opening round, the No. 7 seed travels to the No. 2 seed, No. 6 goes to No. 3 and No. 5 travels to No. 4.

(All odds via BetMGM Sportsbook)

AFC: No. 5 Chargers at No. 4 Texans, 4:30 p.m., CBS/Paramount+ (Chargers -3)

AFC: No. 6 Steelers at No. 3 Ravens, 8 p.m., Prime Video (Ravens -10)

AFC: No. 7 Broncos at No. 2 Bills, 1 p.m., CBS/Paramount+ (Bills -9)

NFC: No. 7 Packers at No. 2 Eagles, 4:30 p.m., Fox (Eagles -4.5)

NFC: No. 6 Commanders at No. 3 Buccaneers, 8 p.m., NBC/Peacock (Buccaneers -3)

NFC: No. 5 Vikings at No. 4 Rams, 8 p.m., ESPN/ABC (Vikings -1.5)

Jan. 18-19: Divisional Round. Two games on Saturday, two on Sunday.

Jan. 26: AFC and NFC Conference Championships.

Feb. 9: Super Bowl LIX at the Superdome in New Orleans.

The Lions are now the favorites to win the Super Bowl at +280. The Chiefs are right behind them at +350 while the Ravens are third at +600.

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AP NFL coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL

Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams listens to Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff after an NFL football game Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley)

Minnesota Vikings' Sam Darnold throws during the first half of an NFL football game against the Green Bay Packers Sunday, Dec. 29, 2024, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Bruce Kluckhohn)

Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) passes against the Pittsburgh Steelers during the first half of an NFL football game, Wednesday, Dec. 25, 2024, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Matt Freed)