Golden Knights vs. Wild Odds
| Golden Knights Odds | -120 |
| Wild Odds | +100 |
| Over / Under | 5.5 -122o / +100u |
Here's everything you need to know about the Vegas Golden Knights vs. Minnesota Wild on Saturday, March 30 – our expert NHL prediction and pick.
A rested Minnesota team will be playing the third game of a six-game home stand Saturday. The Wild had four days off before defeating the San Jose Sharks 3-1 on Thursday. Though their playoff hopes are dimming, they have continued to battle while delivering plenty of stingy defensive performances.
The Golden Knights are also playing well, with a 4-0-1 record in their last five games and Logan Thompson delivering some quality work in net. Vegas's new trade-deadline additions have fit in seamlessly, but fatigue could be an issue, as the team will be closing out a four-in-six road trip Saturday afternoon in the Twin Cities.
The two teams have met just once so far this season. On Feb. 12, the Wild handed the slumping Golden Knights a 5-3 loss at T-Mobile Arena.
Look for both sides to protect the house Saturday, leading to a tight, low-scoring affair.
Vegas Golden Knights
After a 4-1 win in Winnipeg on Thursday, the Golden Knights have taken five of a possible six points on their road trip. That has moved them back into third place in the Pacific Division, one point ahead of the Los Angeles Kings.
As is practically tradition for Vegas at this time of year, they're winning even though some important players are absent from the lineup. Goaltender Adin Hill and defenseman Alex Pietrangelo didn't make the road trip, William Carrier has missed the last two games and Mark Stone and new addition Tomáš Hertl are also still sidelined.
Despite the absences, Vegas has a record of 7-2-1 since the trade deadline — and new additions Noah Hanifin and Anthony Mantha have been important contributors. The Golden Knights are third overall with a 5-on-5 expected goals share of 56.47% over the last 10 games. But the power play remains a weak spot, clicking at just 12%.
Jiri Patera has been called up to fill in for the absent Hill in net. But with Thompson giving up just one goal in each of his two starts on this road trip, he looks likely to draw the assignment Saturday against Minnesota.
Minnesota Wild
The Wild are 7-1-3 in their last 11 games and have collected three of a possible four points in the first two games of their current home stand. But they're running out of runway in their playoff chase, sitting eight points out of the second wild-card spot with 10 games remaining.
Other than a couple of outliers, Minnesota has been very good defensively through this late-season stretch, allowing three goals or less in nine of the 11 games. But Marc-Andre Fleury surrendered 10 goals in total over his two starts this week and was pulled early in the second period of last weekend's 6-0 loss to Los Angeles.
Filip Gustavsson got the 3-1 win for the Wild against San Jose on Thursday. And while Fleury has a 4-2-2 record and 2.63 goals-against average this month, that may set up Gustavsson to make back-to-back starts for the first time in a month.
For the season, the Wild are just above the middle of the pack in 5-on-5 expected goals share at 50.86%. Over the last 10 games, that number has jumped to 53.3%, eighth overall. A weak spot for most of the season, penalty killing has also been strong in recent games, but the power play hasn't generated much at just 1-for-12 in the last six games.
The biggest story of the year in Minnesota is Brock Faber, the 21-year-old rookie who has jumped straight into a first-pairing role on the blue line. He's logging 25:03 time on ice per game, seventh most in the entire league, and his 40 points tie him with Luke Hughes for second place in the rookie scoring race, behind only Connor Bedard.
Rookie teammate Marco Rossi, 22, is also playing an important role, contributing top-six minutes at forward and sitting three points back at 37.
Forward Marcus Foligno missed Thursday's game against San Jose with a lower-body issue and is questionable for Saturday. Kirill Kaprizov and Ryan Hartman were also absent from Friday's practice, but those were deemed to be maintenance days. They're expected to be in the lineup against Vegas.
Golden Knights vs. Wild
Betting Pick & Prediction
With an eight-point lead in the Western Conference standings, the Golden Knights come into Saturday's game as the favorites at -120 as of Friday afternoon. They need points to secure the best possible playoff position, and will be looking for a measure of revenge from their loss to the Wild in February.
There's a lot on the line for both teams, which have been especially good at protecting their net. So while a total of 5.5 goals is certainly set on the low side, it does seem plausible that these two squads will lock it down defensively once again and a single goal could decide the outcome.
Look at the Under at plus money.
Pick: Under 5.5 (+100 at BetMGM | Play to -115)
