Stars vs Wild Prediction, Game Preview, Live Stream, Odds and Picks
Minnesota Tries to Solve Scoring Woes
The Minnesota Wild continue to befuddle in front of the net as they head into Friday’s home game against the Dallas Stars, the team that formerly represented their state.
The Wild out-everythinged the Colorado Avalanche Wednesday but still couldn’t deliver more than two goals, the most they have had in their last six defeats.
Only two teams – the Chicago Blackhawks and Ottawa Senators – have scored fewer even-strength goals than the Wild, and those are not teams you want to mimic.
“It’s hard to play better than we did (than against Colorado),” Mats Zuccarello told the media after the Wild outshot the Avalance 43-19. “That’s a tough loss.”
The Stars, formerly the Minnesota North Stars, will be happy to see the Wild again after dropping two straight games to some of the best teams in the Eastern Conference, including Tuesday’s 3-2 overtime defeat at the hands of the league’s best, the Boston Bruins.
Dallas won 80.7% of the faceoffs against Boston, the second highest rate since the statistic came into being in 1997, but were thoroughly outplayed otherwise, managing just 1.19 expected goals at even strength against 2.37 for the Bruins.
Pete DeBoer’s team went 0-for-4 on the power play, including a 5-on-3 in regulation and a 4-on-3 in overtime, and is now 0-for-14 on the man advantage in the last four games.
“Obviously, we got to cash in on those power plays,” DeBoer told the media. “We’ve had a bit of a dry spell, but it happens to everybody. We’ll get it figured out.”
Let’s check the latest NHL news, stats, injury reports, and NHL lines for Stars vs Wild. We’ve got plenty of NHL picks for you to consider.
Wild Looking for Goals Outside Top Three
Zuccarello had his 12th multi-point game against the Avalanche, ranking second on the team behind left-wing Kirill Kaprizov with 15.
The veteran right wing, who is in his 14th season, has yet to score during February, as seven of the Wild’s nine goals in six games have gone to Kaprizov or Joel Eriksson-Ek.
Matt Boldy has just four goals in his last 22 games, and Frederick Gaudreau hasn’t found the back of the net in 13 games and has one assist over that span for Minnesota, one of nine teams in the NHL scoring fewer than three goals per game.
Meanwhile, 21-goal scorer Sammy Walker and Adam Beckman, with 18 goals, are stuck in Iowa, playing for the team’s AHL squad.
Karlstrom Gets Another Crack at NHL
The Stars are giving 25-year-old center Fredrik Karlstrom another shot at the NHL as it looks for a player to fill a certain role on the fourth line.
Karlstrom played in three games last season with Dallas, notching an assist and logging 105 games with the Texas Stars of the AHL in between.
The third-round draft pick in 2016 out of Sweden has 24 goals and 26 assists in the two seasons with the Stars, including five multi-point games this season.
Stars vs Wild Game Injuries
Stars vs Wild Head-to-Head
The Stars have taken back-to-back 4-1 wins from the Wild, including one just last week, after losing the season’s first meeting 6-5 in a shootout on Dec. 4.
Dallas has a comfortable lead in the series, 53-38-1, but is 20-24-1 in Minnesota.
Stars vs Wild Game Information
- Game: Stars (30-14-11) vs Wild (28-21-5)
- Location: Xcel Energy Center, Saint Paul, MN
- Day/Time: Friday, Feb. 17, 8:00 p.m. ET
- Stars vs Wild Live Stream: NHL.TV
Stars vs Wild Betting Lines
Stars vs Wild Picks and Prediction
Neither team can claim favoritism in this one, as both are listed at -110 on the NHL lines. The Wild are laying 1½ goals and are 8-15 against the spread (ATS) at home.
The Stars are 16-11 ATS on the road and 13-3 as an underdog.
Ten consecutive Dallas games have finished under the total goals, while the under has cashed in eight of the last nine Minnesota games
Minnesota is listed at -110 in our Las Vegas NHL odds. This means that if you wager $100 on the Wild, you have a chance to win $91. Dallas is -110, offering a chance to win $91 on a $100 wager.
The implied probability attached to the betting lines gives Minnesota a 52.38% chance to win, with the Stars 52.38%.
