NEW YORK — On Sunday night, Minnesota Wild rookie forward Danila Yurov dined with his agent, who also represents a few of the other Russians of note in the NHL. At some point, Yurov said he would get his first NHL goal versus fellow countryman Igor Shesterkin of the New York Rangers.
Roughly 24 hours later, Yurov made good on that promise, shoveling a loose puck over the goal line for the eventual game-winner as the Wild beat the Rangers 3-1 at Madison Square Garden.
Known among his teammates for having a perpetual smile, Yurov, 21, beamed in the postgame locker room, describing the play and the euphoria of scoring his first goal on one of the biggest stages in hockey.
Then the smile faded, and he got serious, his voice almost cracking at one point as he told reporters, in his still-imp