The Minnesota Wild are set to host the Vegas Golden Knights on Monday evening in a matchup featuring two teams vying for playoff positioning in the west.
The Wild – who currently hold a narrow edge over Nashville for the 4th spot with a record of 36-20-4 (76 points) – are 19-7-1 at home this season. They are 3rd in the Central Division, 5-4-1 in their last 10, and winners of two straight.
The Vegas Golden Knights, on the other hand, find themselves in the 8th spot at 34-26-4, 4-6-0 across their last ten and 16-13-1 away from home; they have also won two consecutive entering this one.
Golden Knights at Wild Stats
Looking at the Vegas Golden Knights stats
The Golden Knights have struggled to maintain their grasp on the final playoff spot having an up and down 2022 after starting the season 22-12-0. Since that point, they have notched a 12-14-4 record which has included winless streaks of three games (twice) and five games (once).
Their five-game streak just wrapped up a little more than a week ago when they went winless on a five-game road trip.
Logan Thompson is expected to start for a banged-up team still missing their number one goaltender in Robin Lehner. Thompson has appeared in six games this season, winning three of them. If Vegas starts him, they would be riding the hot hand as he has been in net for each of their last two victories, both at home.
Jonathan Marchessault leads the team in points (48) and goals (25), while Chandler Stephenson has the team lead in assists with 31. Watch for Evgeni Dadonov to continue his hot streak in this one – he has four goals in his last five games.
Looking at the Minnesota Wild stats
Minnesota is expected to start Cam Talbot in goal against Vegas. Talbot took the win in each of the last two Minnesota victories as well as his last three starts prior to this current run – in total, he has won five consecutive games.
Offensively, Minnesota has had no trouble getting the puck in the net this season. They average 3.67 goals per game, good for 3rd in the NHL.
Many of their goals have come off the stick of the 24-year old sensational left winger Kirill Kaprizov. In just his second season, Kaprizov has already generated a buzz in Minnesota as being one of the best young talents in the entire league.
Kaprizov has improved on his offensive output from his rookie year (27 G, 24 A in 55 games) to provide 32 goals and 44 assists over 59 games this season. Ryan Hartman is second on the team in goals with 25; Mats Zuccarello is second in assists with 43.
Matchup Information
Golden Knights at Wild Betting Trends
- Vegas will be looking for the regular-season sweep in this one
- Golden Knights is 3-7-0 in their last ten road games
- Vegas is 0-6 ATS away
- The total has gone over in 14 of the Wild’s last 20 at home
- Minnesota is 6-4-0 in their last ten home games
Who to Bet Golden Knights at Wild
Minnesota is the superior offensive team but gives up slightly more goals per game than Vegas (3.20 vs 3.02). The Wild are averaging 3.4 goals for and 3.2 goals against in their last 10, while Vegas is averaging 3.0 for and 3.3 against in theirs. Besides offensive output/defensive production, another factor that could play a role in this one is in regards to injuries.
Vegas is expected to start their third-string goalie since they have been without their number one, Lehner, since March 8th. In all, they have six players on the IR; Minnesota doesn’t list a single injury.
Top NHL betting odds are predicting this to be a high-scoring game, with the Wild consistently favored in the betting guides. If past performance is any indication of future success, then the over sounds like one of the better NHL expert picks for this match.
Vegas has surpassed six total goals in six of their last ten games. By the same measurement, the Wild have done the same (greater than six total goals in six of their last 10). The offenses ought to be able to get going. Look to bet the over in this one.
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