With offensive mainstays in and out of their lineup due to injuries all season, the Minnesota Wild have preached and pleaded about the need for secondary sources of offense to reveal themselves.

If that means lesser-known players like Yakov Trenin and newcomer Vinnie Hinostroza doing the heavy lifting with the puck, well, whatever works.On Thursday, the Wild got goals from those two — who would never be classified as usual suspects — snapping a two-game losing streak and clawing back to .500 at home with a 2-1 win over Carolina.

Minnesota goalie Filip Gustavsson had 38 saves in the victory.

It was the kind of game that Wild coach John Hynes said his squad needed to play to break out of the slump they had found themselves after back-to-back shutout losses in Ottawa and Boston. And the emergence of secondary scorers is a recent trend he likes.

“I think I’d probably say the last couple of weeks, that the guys that are playing in the 9 through 12 roles have brought (it),” Hynes said. “We’ve had some depth scoring on the road trip, and obviously we got it again tonight. So that’s a big difference and I think it’s important. It’ll be important down the stretch that you have some contributions throughout the lineup.”

Carolina pulled its goalie with three minutes remaining and got on the board via a Sebastian Aho goal, then took its timeout with 2:16 remaining. The Hurricanes pelted Gustavsson repeatedly in the frantic final two minutes, but Minnesota held fast.

The Wild ended their goal drought quickly and emphatically in the opening minutes when Marat Khusnutdinov won an offensive zone race to the puck, then flipped a pass to Trenin for a quick shot that fooled Carolina goalie Frederik Anderson low and got the home crowd involved.

Carolina tested Gustavsson repeatedly in the first, firing 15 shots his way, but the Minnesota goalie kept the Hurricanes off the board. And the Wild were within an inch or two of doubling their lead when newcomer Hinostroza — playing his first game for Minnesota after being claimed off waivers from Nashville a day earlier — popped a point-blank shot that was deflected over the crossbar and away from danger.

“Obviously, lot of emotions. Entering a new locker room sometimes can be hard to do, but this group couldn’t have made it easier for me today. So I’m just happy to be a part of this,” said Hinostroza, who had last scored on Nov. 23, 2023. “Got in late last night, so I’ll go back and get some sleep tonight, and then back at it tomorrow. So it’ll be nice to see a little bit of down time.”

The Hurricanes got a scare in the second period when rookie forward Jackson Blake, a prep star at Eden Prairie who was playing in his home state for the first time as a NHLer, caught the heel of Wild forward Marcus Johansson’s skate to his face after falling down in front of the Minnesota net and had to leave the game for a few shifts.

When Blake returned, he had a solo rush to the net thwarted when Brock Faber gave him a bear hug in front of the net. The referees awarded Blake a penalty shot — the first of his career — but he lost control of the puck near the top of the crease and Gustavsson kept it from crossing the line.

“I definitely had him. I just lost the puck there,” said Blake, who had dozens of friends and family in the building. “Definitely disappointed I didn’t score there, but whatever. It’s over.”

It was just one moment of frustration for the Hurricanes, who could be seen slamming doors and snapping sticks on the visitor’s bench, clearly stung by their inability to make a mark on the scoreboard. The frustration deepened late in the period when Carolina defenseman Dmitry Orlov’s shot from the blue line hit teammate Aho in front of the net, and Aho limped to the bench in obvious pain. He returned for the third period and played without impediment.

Minnesota finally got some separation in the opening minute of the third when a long-range wrist shot by Jared Spurgeon was tipped by Hinostroza and hit the post behind Anderson. The puck landed behind the goalie and slid over the line when the goalie tried to cover it. There was no call on the ice. But after video review, officials ruled it a good goal, crediting Hinostroza as the last Wild player to touch the puck.

“He played awesome tonight, unreal. Obviously you can see the speed and skills there, right? So, it doesn’t matter, a new team. It’s nice to the confidence he plays with and heads up playing-making he has and the ability there too,” said Marcus Foligno, gushing about his new linemate. “Fun playing with him and I thought we did a really good job our line tonight and just a good response for our team in general.”

Anderson finished with 22 saves for the Hurricanes, who have now lost two in a row.

With Minnesota’s blue line back to full health with Jonas Brodin in the lineup for the second consecutive game, veteran Jon Merrill was a healthy scratch for the first time since a Dec. 20 home game versus Utah.

The Wild close out this two-game homestand on Saturday with the New York Islanders making their only visit to St. Paul this season. After that, the NHL takes a two-week break while teams from Canada, Finland, Sweden and the USA participate in the 4 Nations Face Off, with games being played in Montreal and Boston.