Cam Talbot #33 of the Minnesota Wild makes a poke check save against Mark Stone #61 of the Vegas Golden Knights in the first period in Game Two of the First Round of the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs at T-Mobile Arena on May 18, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada … ((Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images))
MINNEAPOLIS - Cam Talbot has played arguably his best hockey of the season since the Minnesota Wild acquired future Hall-of-Fame goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury in the hours before the NHL trade deadline.
On Monday, Talbot was named the NHL’s First Star of the Week. Talbot helped lead the Wild to three wins, two in overtime, and was as close to perfect as a goalie can be. Talbot finished the week 3-0 with a 1.33 goals against average, one shutout and a .959 save percentage as the Wild is now In second place in the Central Division and on a six-game win streak.
Talbot made 28 saves in a 3-0 shutout over the Vegas Golden Knights, his 26th career shutout, on the day the Wild traded for Fleury. He made 40 saves on Sunday as the Wild beat the Colorado Avalanche 3-2 in overtime in front of a sellout crowd at Xcel Energy Center.
Since March 3, Talbot is 8-0-0 with a 2.13 goals against average and a .924 save percentage.
The Wild is currently in the No. 3 spot in the Western Conference at 84 points (40-20-4) and is four points behind Calgary for the No. 2 spot. The Wild is 8-1-1 in its last 10 games.