NHL Betting Preview (Oct. 29): Wild vs. Penguins Odds

Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports

Marc-Andre Fleury will play his final game in Pittsburgh on Tuesday after 13 seasons with the Penguins. The future Hall of Famer has a 5-4 record against his former club, including a 32-save performance in the Wild’s last meeting, which ended in a 3-2 victory for Minnesota.

Wild vs. Penguins Odds

Minnesota Wild Moneyline: -120
Pittsburgh Penguins Moneyline: +100
Puck Line: Wild -1.5 (+195), Penguins +1.5 (-220)
Game Total: 6 (Over -120, Under +100)

Matchup

Minnesota’s four-game winning streak came to an end on Saturday in Philadelphia, putting its season record at 5-2-1. Meanwhile, Pittsburgh is eager to turn things around after five consecutive losses, including a sweep on its Western Conference road trip. Over the past three seasons, the Penguins have a 4-2 record against the Wild.

There’s still no word on whether or not Jared Spurgeon will return to the Wild lineup after missing the last six games with a lower-body injury, but he went through a full practice on Monday and that’s a good sign. Same goes for Pittsburgh’s Bryan Rust, who left Saturday’s game after taking a hit and did not practice on Monday. According to the Penguins, Rust is still being evaluated.

Best Bets for Wild vs. Penguins

Minnesota Wild Moneyline (-120) at Sports Interaction

Over the past three seasons, Pittsburgh has done well against Western Conference teams at home, but this year’s team is a different story. In past years, the Penguins were in the league’s top half in key stats like shot attempts and expected goals during five-on-five play. However, this season, the Penguins rank among the bottom-half of the league in those categories.

Their defensive issues stand out: Pittsburgh has allowed the most shots at five-on-five, and only two teams have given up more goals. This could be trouble against the Wild, whose offense ranks 10th in the league and has scored three or more goals in all but one game. Minnesota’s defense is just as impressive, allowing two or fewer goals in six of its eight games and ranking second in suppressing shots.

Given Pittsburgh’s current struggles, it will be tough to hold off a Minnesota team that ranks among the top 10 in expected goals percentage. The Wild are currently the fourth-best team in this metric across all situations. In contrast, Pittsburgh has only controlled expected goals in two of its 10 games so far, and those came against weaker opponents.

Kirill Kaprizov Anytime Goal (+115) at Sports Interaction

Kirill Kaprizov is currently tied for sixth in the NHL scoring race with 15 points in eight games and Tuesday’s matchup should provide him with opportunities to add to his total. Kaprizov has scored 40-plus goals in each of his last three seasons.

The 27-year-old currently leads the Wild in expected goals per 60 minutes at the individual level, and given that Pittsburgh currently ranks as the worst team in expected goals against per 60, +115 odds seem like a good price to back a three-time 40-goal scorer to light the lamp on Tuesday.

Follow Andy’s bets on the Action App here.