Minnesota Wild vs Boston Bruins Betting Analysis and Prediction
There are 11 NHL games on a busy Tuesday night on the NHL schedule. In one of the early evening games, the Boston Bruins (19-5-5) host the Minnesota Wild (12-13-4). Boston is first in the NHL standings for the Atlantic Division and the Wild are seventh in the Central Division. This is the first meeting between the two teams this season.
Marc-Andre Fleury (3.29 GAA, .886 save percentage) is expected to start in goal for the Minnesota Wild, while Linus Ullmark (2.79 GAA, .915 save percentage) is the projected starting goaltender for the Boston Bruins. Let’s take a look at the Wild vs Bruins betting analysis.
Minnesota Wild vs. Boston Bruins Odds
Wild vs. Bruins Information
Minnesota Wild vs Boston Bruins
Location of the game: TD Garden. Boston, Massachusetts.
Date & Time: Tuesday, December 19. 7:00 p.m. ET.
How to Watch: ESPN+ | SN East (Canada)
Recent Scores
- Three of the last four Minnesota Wild games have resulted in wins, but the team is coming off of a 4-3 loss on the road against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Monday night.
- Boston, among the early season NHL picks to win the Stanley Cup, lost 2-1 in overtime to the New York Rangers.
- Jeremy Swayman made 32 saves and Trent Frederic scored the lone goal.
Minnesota Wild vs Boston Bruins Betting Analysis
Minnesota Has Been a Streaky Team
The Wild have been one of the streakiest NHL teams in the league this season. They won three in a row before losing to the Penguins on Monday and lost consecutive games before that streak. Before that, they won four games in a row and, prior to that, experienced a season-worst seven-game losing streak. Thus, the pattern suggests a loss for the Wild vs Bruins betting analysis.
Minnesota is 21st in NHL stats for goals per game (2.97) and 19th in goals allowed (3.21). They have the third-worst penalty kill in the league at 72.4 percent, so limiting penalties will be crucial against Boston’s eighth-ranked power play (24.2 percent). It doesn’t help that the Wild are also third-worst in penalty minutes at 11.6 per game.
Boston Cooling Down
The Bruins, while still a legitimate Stanley Cup contender, haven’t been as dominant in the last month or so as they were to start the season. They’re 5-3-2 in their last 10 games and have just a five-point lead on the Toronto Maple Leafs in the Atlantic Division with one game in hand. Boston seemingly couldn’t lose in October, but they’re coming back to earth.
Still, the Boston Bruins are fourth in goals allowed (2.52) and have the league’s best penalty kill (88.3 percent). They’re slightly below average at even strength, however, ranking 16th in even strength goals with 70. They’re also only 26th in shots allowed (32.3), indicating special teams has largely been responsible for their success.
David Pastrnak leads the Bruins in NHL player stats with 41 points (17 goals, 24 assists).
Updates
Minnesota is without defensemen Jonas Brodin and Jared Spurgeon, both of whom are on the NHL injury report. Mats Zuccarello, the Wild’s leading scorer, is a game-time decision. Boston is without Charlie McAvoy and Pavel Zacha.
Wild vs. Bruins Betting Preview
Minnesota is the betting underdog in the Wild vs Bruins betting analysis with NHL odds of +160 for the moneyline and +1.5 (-150) for the puck line. The over/under is 5.5. Boston has -190 moneyline odds and -1.5 (+130) puck line odds.
Minnesota Wild vs. Boston Bruins Betting Prediction
Considering the Minnesota Wild is in the second half of a back-to-back and is a streaky team, there’s a lot to like in the Bruins moneyline as well as the over 5.5 (-130). Fleury has allowed 17 goals in his last four starts, while Ullmark has given up 22 in his last five starts.
- NHL Pick: Bruins 5-4
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