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They Don’t Call Him Jesper Sievestedt
April 29, 2026
Posted 2 hours ago by
Jesper Wallstedt is earning the first half of his surname. The 23-year-old Swede stopped another 20 shots, more than half of those in the third period against an increasingly frantic and frustrated Dallas offense in Tuesday's 4-2 win over the Stars that put the Wild up 3-2 in the series. With both of the goals coming at five-on-four, Wallstedt still has not allowed an even-strength goal since the opening minutes of Game 3—a stretch that has featured several overtimes and many deceptively good chances.
How on-point has Wallstedt been? Tuesday's performance lowered his save percentage in this series, to a still-sparkling .926. The Wild have a reputation. It's one of competence, which is a fine thing to have, but it's also one of underachievement. They've made eight of the last 10 postseasons, and been eliminated in the first round in all eight. This is a function of often having a team that's just OK, and also of the luck of the bracket sending them up against some first-round buzzsaws. That latter trend was not broken this year, the Wild drawing one of the other two real contenders in the West. But these Wild already feel a little different than their predecessors. Part of that was the midseason trade for Quinn Hughes, a bold and expensive move that only real Cup hopefuls tend to pull off. An even bigger part was the emergence of Wallstedt, looking like he might be cut out for being this generation's rookie Cam Ward. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xvAONFVKgi8
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