Golden Knights vs. Wild Free NHL Picks and Odds Breakdown (Archive)
It’s two Western Conference teams jockeying for playoff positioning who meet on Monday night as Vegas visits Minnesota. Which way to lean at BMR’s top-rated sportsbooks?
Vegas Golden Knights vs. Minnesota Wild
Monday, March 21, 2022 – 08:00 PM EDT at Xcel Energy Center
Just in case you didn’t know this, the NBA’s Minnesota Timberwolves, NFL’s Vikings, and MLB’s Twins all play in Minneapolis. The NHL’s Wild play in St. Paul, but the Twin Cities are only about 10 miles apart.
Another thing to know: Monday is the NHL Trade Deadline, so it’s possible that one or both of these teams make a move that could affect the roster for tonight.
This wraps up the season series, although they could meet in the playoffs (unlikely). Vegas leads 2-0, winning both at home 3-2 on Nov. 11 and 6-4 on Dec. 12. Chandler Stephenson leads the Knights with four points, all assists, in the series. Defenseman Zach Whitecloud has two goals (only six on the season). Robin Lehner and Laurent Brossoit each got a win in the net.
Defenseman Jared Spurgeon leads Minnesota with three points (one goal, two assists) in the series. Cam Talbot started both and has a 4.17 GAA and .885 save percentage. The home team is 4-0 in the past four meetings at BMR’s top-rated books.
Knights Very Banged up
Vegas sits fourth in the Pacific Division with 72 points and will not be finishing first but could get as high as second. Don’t be shocked if Vegas reacquires goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury by Monday’s trade deadline after he was dealt there in the offseason.
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Current Knights No. 1 Robin Lehner is on injured reserve with a lower-body injury that may be a fractured kneecap (NHL teams are notoriously vague when it comes to injuries). It’s not clear if he will make it back. It probably will be Laurent Brossoit in net here. He was last in action Tuesday and allowed four goals before being pulled in a loss at Winnipeg to fall to 10-9-3 with a 2.90 goals-against average and .895 save percentage. Logan Thompson has started the past two, but it should be Brossoit’s turn.
The team also has a lot of offensive firepower currently injured, led by Max Pacioretty, Mark Stone, and Reilly Smith. Pacioretty (15 goals, 14 assists) perhaps could return Monday but not likely. Four of the team’s defensemen also are on injured reserve.
Jonathan Marchessault leads the Knights with 25 goals and 48 points but is minus-2. Vegas has struggled on the power play this season, converting only 18.7 percent – again, though, injuries have played a big role. On the penalty kill, the team is middle of the pack at 78.7 percent.
Vegas has lost its past five road games on the NHL picks and is 1-6 in its past seven as an underdog.
Wild Always Tough At Home
Minnesota sits third in the Central Division with 76 points but is only a point out of second – the Wild will not be catching first-place Colorado, which is running away from the rest of the division. Minnesota comes off a 3-1 home win over Chicago on Saturday, its second straight victory. Frederick Gaudreau (ninth goal of the season), Ryan Hartman (25th), and Jordan Greenway (seventh) had the goals. Seven of Gaudreau’s goals and 17 of his 28 points this season have come in just the last 23 games.
Kirill Kaprizov, last season’s Calder Trophy winner as Rookie of the Year, leads the club with 32 goals and 76 points. He had a helper Saturday and has at least one point in 10 of his past 11.
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Cam Talbot got the win Saturday and probably will start this one ahead of Kaapo Kahkonen. Talbot is 24-12-1 with a 2.92 GAA and .907 SV. Talbot has allowed two or fewer goals in four of his last five appearances. His five-start winning streak is his third such streak this season
The team did make a trade over the weekend in landing winger Nicolas Deslauriers from Anaheim for a third-round pick. Deslauriers has five goals and 10 points in 61 games played this season and is more of a physical presence as he leads the league with 10 fights (didn’t know someone kept track of that statistic). He should make his Wild debut Monday.
"Seems to fit the Minnesota Wild," coach Dean Evason said. "Plays a hard game, plays gritty, he's got a skillset, too, that can score. It's going to provide us with size and bite and can play up and down our lineup, so we're excited. Certainly, a guy that we've identified for a bit now that's a pain in the butt to play against, so he'll now be a Minnesota Wild pain in the butt."
The Pick
The Wild are converting 19.8 percent of their power-play chances and their PK is at 76 percent. Minnesota is 17-7 on the NHL odds in its past 24 after a win. The team is an excellent 19-7-1 at home and will be the pick.
NHL Pick: Wild (-158) at BetOnline (visit our BetOnline Review)
*The line and/or odds on picks in this article might have moved since the content was commissioned. For updated line movements, visit BMR’s free betting odds product.