Jarome Iginla records hat trick, Vesa Toskala makes 27 saves as Flames beat Wild 5-2

Iginla’s hat trick leads Flames past Wild 5-2

ST. PAUL, Minn. — Jarome Iginla recorded his 10th career hat trick and Vesa Toskala made 27 saves in his first start since being traded to Calgary as the Flames beat the Minnesota Wild 5-2 on Sunday.

Rene Bourque and Mark Giordano also scored for the Flames, who stayed within a point of Detroit for the final playoff spot in the Western Conference.

Iginla entered as the all-time leading scorer against Minnesota despite not having a goal against the Wild since March 22, 2008. He broke that 10-game drought with a slap shot that beat Niklas Backstrom to put the Flames up 3-1 in the second period.

Guillaume Latendresse scored both goals for the Wild.

Iginla, who assisted on last week’s gold medal-winning goal by Sidney Crosby for Canada against the United States, also scored in the third on another slap shot during a 5-on-3 power play. He added an empty-net goal with 1:33 left.

Toskala was traded to Anaheim for J.S. Giguere on Jan. 31, and then to Calgary for Curtis McElhinney on March 3. He made his first start since Jan. 30, when he was still minding net for Toronto, playing in place of resting Olympian Miikka Kiprusoff. He looked solid in net for his new team, save for a couple of second-period goals by Latendresse, who has 21 goals in 39 games since being acquired by the Wild.

The crowd of 18,217 that gave the Wild franchise its 400th consecutive sellout went quiet early when Bourque tipped in Matt Stajan’s slap shot from the blue line only 19 seconds into the game. It was the quickest goal against the Wild at home in team history.

The crowd groaned again later in the period when Giordano wristed a shot from the left circle past Backstrom after a nice feed from Iginla to make it 2-0.

But Minnesota pulled within a goal twice in the second period on Latendresse’s two scores.

The Wild cut the lead to 2-1 when Latendresse backhanded a pass from Martin Havlat past Toskala at the 9:53 mark. Then, after Iginla’s second-period goal, Brent Burns’ long pass found Latendresse ahead of all Calgary’s defenders on a breakaway. Latendresse slapped the puck from the left circle to beat Toskala and pull Minnesota to 3-2.

NOTES: Toskala became the first Flames goalie other than Kiprusoff to start for Calgary against Minnesota since current Flames goalie coach Jamie McLennan. McLennan last started against the Wild on Nov. 7, 2003. Kiprusoff had started all 37 games versus the Wild since arriving in Calgary. … Calgary scored at least three goals in back-to-back games for the fifth time this season. … Latendresse has 14 goals at home for Minnesota this season. Only four players have scored more at home — Marian Gaborik had 28 in 2007-08 and Owen Nolan had 20 last season.