Blue Jackets top Wild 3-1
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Rookie defenseman David Savard scored his first career goal and added an assist to lift the Blue Jackets past the Minnesota Wild 3-1 on Tuesday night and give Columbus' Todd Richards a win in his first game as coach against his former team.
Antoine Vermette added a power-play goal and Jeff Carter scored his second goal in as many games after missing 10 with a shoulder injury for Columbus.
Curtis Sanford made 28 saves to improve to 10-12-4.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Richards was 77-71-16 with the Wild from 2009-11 before being fired last April. He is 4-7-1 for Columbus since taking over for Scott Arniel on Jan. 9.
Nate Prosser scored his first career goal for Minnesota.
Niklas Backstrom made 34 saves for the Wild.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Columbus played physical at the start of the game and outshot Minnesota 14-7.
After Derek Dorsett had a thunderous check on Prosser behind the Wild goal, the two had a fight at 7:10 of the period.
A bit later in the period, Savard scored with a shot from the point through traffic past Backstrom at 8:59.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Prossser sent a one-timer past a screened Sanford at 18:39 to tie it at 1-1.
In the second period, Sanford kicked away a hard Erik Christensen power-play shot to keep the game even.
Vermette then made Columbus' next power play count, sliding in a backhand from the slot for his seventh goal and first in 11 games at 15:31 to make it 2-1.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}In the third period, Carter jammed home a rebound for his 12th goal at 5:38 to make it 3-1. Colton Gillies and Savard picked up the assists.
NOTES: Wild captain Mikko Koivu missed his eighth straight game due to a shoulder injury. ... Christensen, acquired from the Rangers last week, made his Minnesota debut, finishing with 11:21 of ice time and a minus-2 rating. ... Savard became the 29th player to score for Columbus this season, a league high and a franchise record.