Squaring off with nearly identical records entering Wednesday’s contest, the Toronto Maple Leafs were presented with a key opportunity to get out of a rut against a quality Minnesota Wild team, with a four-game road trip on the horizon before the 4 Nations Face-Off break.

The Toronto Maple Leafs have struggled to score goals during their recent three-game losing streak, prompting forward William Nylander to voice his frustration after Wednesday's 3-1 loss to the Minnes

Jared Spurgeon scored what turned out to be the winning goal in the first period and the visiting Minnesota Wild went on to defeat the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-1 on Wednesday night.

Jared Spurgeon and Marat Khusnutdinov scored in the first period, Filip Gustavsson stopped 31 shots, and the Minnesota Wild beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-1 on Wednesday night. Marcus Foligno added an empty-netter in the final minute as Minnesota won its second straight to improve to 3-5-0 in their last eight games.

Filip Gustavsson made 31 saves as the Minnesota Wild edged Toronto 3-1 on Wednesday, sending the Maple Leafs to a third straight regulation loss.

"I feel good despite numbers," said Rielly, who has five goals and 17 assists for 22 points in 51 contests. "It's a battle right now. Just trying to compete and play the best I can."

TORONTO -- Filip Gustavsson made 31 saves for the Minnesota Wild in a 3-1 win against the Toronto Maple Leafs at Scotiabank Arena on Wednesday. Marat Khusnutdinov, Jared Spurgeon and Marcus Foligno scored for the Wild (30-17-4), who are 2-2-0 in their past four games.

William Nylander’s third-period goal failed to spark a comeback as Toronto fell 3-1 to the Minnesota Wild at Scotiabank Arena on Wednesday. The Leafs have scored one goal in each of their last three games in losing three in a row for the third time this season.

Leafs dug a hole and they started early. Auston Matthews tries to knock down Jared Spurgeon's shot but it gets by Woll instead pic.twitter.com/q2NjvvUE52 After one it was 2-0 Wild. The Leafs had 63% Corsi and 48% Expected Goals. It's almost like that might be part of the problem along with some bad luck and a vague sense of ennui.

Jared Spurgeon and Marat Khusnutdinov scored in the first period, Filip Gustavsson stopped 31 shots, and the Minnesota Wild beat the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-1 on Wednesday night.Marcus Foligno added an empty-netter in the final minute as Minnesota won its second straight to improve to 3-5-0 in their last eight games.