Wild vs Blues Prediction, Stream, Odds and Picks, Mar 15
Wild Favored over Blues
The Minnesota Wild and the St. Louis Blues will collide in a Central Division showdown on Wednesday at the Enterprise Center. It’s the third meeting of the season between them, with the head-to-head series delicately poised on a 1-1 tie. And with the stakes high as the season winds down, the premium on the win couldn’t be any greater.
The Wild are chasing first place in the division while the Blues hope to keep their slim hopes of a wild card spot alive. If the NHL betting markets were any indication, the fact that this game is being skewed toward the high-flying Wild is a telling sign. But will they deliver on their favorable NHL odds? Find out as we preview this fascinating contest between these familiar foes.
Wild Look To Rebound
Minnesota ranks second in the Central Division behind a 38-21-8 record and 84 points from 67 games. The Wild are three points adrift of the current leaders, the Dallas Stars. At the same time, they are four points ahead of the defending Stanley Cup champion Colorado Avalanche.
The Wild are 7-0-3 in their last 10 games. Most recently, they saw a two-game winning streak snapped on Monday night following a 5-4 overtime loss to the Arizona Coyotes.
The nine-goal showdown was a physical, back-and-forth contest that saw the Wild give the hosts a run for their money. In the second period, Minnesota took the 4-2 lead, but they failed to protect it as the Coyotes rallied and tied the game 4-4 to send it into overtime. Clayton Keller scored Arizona’s game-tying goal at 12:06 in the third period. Then, he beat Filip Gustavsson at 4:09 to give the Coyotes the much-needed home win.
Mats Zuccarello may be a 5’7 Norwegian lizard man who has the soul of a chihuahua…but he is also a scrum king pic.twitter.com/Em5r1I20G3
— dont worry about it (@soleildabs) March 13, 2023
Blues Face Must-Win Game
St. Louis is sixth in the Central Division behind a 29-32-5 record and 63 points from 66 games. The Blues are 10 points adrift of the Nashville Predators (fifth) and 16 points behind the Winnipeg Jets (fourth) in the division.
As things currently stand in the playoff frame, the Blues are third in the queue behind the Jets (79 points), Predators (73) and Flames (73). If the season were to end today, the Jets would receive the second and final Western Conference wild card spot.
It’s an uphill battle for the Blues, one that even the sports betting markets tip as the quintessential longshot sports bet. It doesn’t help matters when recent form stands on a 3-5-2 record in the last 10 games and includes a 5-3 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights on Sunday night.
The St. Louis Blues gave as good as they got, and with Tyler Pitlick’s goal in the third period, they tied the game 3-3. But, less than two minutes later, Pavel Dorofeyev had the Golden Knights back in front with his first NHL goal at 5:23. Alex Pietrangelo iced the game by scoring the empty-netter at 19:53.
Blink and you might miss Jakub Vrana’s power-play goal. #stlbluespic.twitter.com/28B0a3oinT
— St. Louis Blues (@StLouisBlues) March 12, 2023
Wild vs Blues Game Injuries
Wild vs Blues Head-to-Head
Minnesota is a subpar 3-5-2 versus St. Louis in the last 10 meetings. At the same time, St. Louis has a 7-3-0 record from the same period. Both of these records are largely comprised of the 2021-22 NHL playoff series between them, which the Blues clinched 4-2 to advance into the Western Conference semifinals against the betting online odds..
This season, the Wild opened their regular-season series with a 5-2 win over the Blues in St. Louis on Dec. 31. However, the Blues leveled the series a week or so later, shutting out the Wild 3-0 in Minnesota on Jan. 8.
In the last 10 games, the total has seen the over cash six times and the under four times at the sportsbook exchange. This season, the total has gone 1-1 in O/U betting. Interestingly, the Wild outshot the Blues on both occasions – 32-31 in the 5-2 win and 35-24 in the 3-0 loss.
Wild vs Blues Game Information
- Game: Wild (38-21-8) vs Blues (29-32-5)
- Location: Enterprise Center, St. Louis
- Day/Time: Wednesday, March 15, 9:30 p.m. ET
- Wild vs Blues Live Stream: NHL.TV
Wild vs Blues Betting Lines
Wild vs Blues Picks and Prediction
Arguably, there is little that these two teams don’t know about each other. Moreover, this rivalry has provided NHL betting fans with absorbing and competitive games to sink their teeth into.
Quite rightly, the Wild are favored to win. They’re in better shape overall and almost certain to clinch a playoff spot. That said, the Blues can’t be underestimated even if they are in dire straits with their season hanging by a thread. Sure, they need a minor miracle to make the playoffs. But they don’t need that to play spoil sports in order to deliver the upset over the Wild.
Minnesota is listed at -140 in our Vegas NHL lines. So, if you wager $100 on the Wild, there’s a chance to win $71. St. Louis is $120, with a chance to win $120 on a $100 wager. The implied probability attached to the betting lines gives Minnesota a 58.33% chance to win, with the Blues at 45.45%.
