Minnesota Wild vs. Dallas Stars Game 1 Prediction, NHL Playoff Odds
It’s a heavyweight battle right from the start in this year’s playoffs as the Dallas Stars face the Minnesota Wild in the first round.
Winning the stacked Central Division was always key to an easier path in the playoffs this year and unfortunately the Stars and Wild fell short against the Presidents’ Trophy-winning Avalanche.
This is shaping up to be one of the toughest first-round matchups, with Dallas opening as slim -120 favourites to win Game 1 on the NHL odds, with the total set at 5.5.
Wild vs. Stars NHL Betting Odds
If the regular season results are any indication, this will be a long series. Dallas and Minnesota split four games, with the combined score tied at an even 13-13. High scoring was consistent with three of those four games producing seven or more total goals.
These teams have met in the playoffs twice (2016 and 2023), with the Stars winning both series’ in six games. Of course, Dallas used to reside in Minnesota as the North Stars before moving to Texas for the 1993-94 season.
There isn’t exactly a rich playoff history in Minnesota as they’ve only made it our of the second round once when they were swept by the Anaheim Mighty Ducks in the 2023 Western Conference Finals.
The Stars have a bit of a richer history, winning the Stanley Cup in 1999. It’s been all heartbreak in recent years, however, as Dallas has lost in the conference finals in each of the last three seasons.
Oddsmakers are mimicking the Game 1 price on the series line, with the Stars set as -120 favourites and the Wild coming in as +100 underdogs on the NHL futures board. With that in mind, it’s no surprise the favoured exact series result is Dallas winning in seven games at +425.
Minnesota Wild
Minnesota was one of only two teams in the NHL with multiple 40-goal scorers this season, with Kirill Kaprizov netting 45 and Matt Boldy putting up 42. Both players were key contributors to the Wild boasting the third-best power play percentage in the NHL (25.2 per cent), although they are edged out by the Stars (28.6 per cent) in the No. 2 spot.
Minnesota claimed Cup-or-bust status when they made the biggest trade in the NHL this season, acquiring Quinn Hughes. The former Vancouver Canucks captain has the chance to make or break this series for the Wild. He was the fifth-highest scoring defenceman in the league with 76 points this season and he’s proven to be a game-breaker who can log nearly 30 minutes per night.
While Jake Oettinger is securely entrenched as Dallas’ starter, it’s a little more open in Minnesota between Filip Gustavsson and Jesper Wallstadt. They’ve alternated starts the majority of the year, but Wallstadt’s numbers since the Olympic break (4-4-2, 2.37 goals-against average, .919 save percentage) have been better than Gustavsson (8-6-0, 2.82 GAA, .895 SV). It’s possible you see both goalies in this series.
Dallas Stars
Want to take a stab at the only other team with multiple 40-goal scorers this year? Ding, ding ding, you’re right, it’s the Dallas Stars. Jason Robertson and Wyatt Johnston each finished with 45 tucks and they also led the team in scoring with 96 and 86 points, respectively.
You also can’t talk about this offence without mentioning Mikko Rantanen. The hulking Finnish winger is one of the best playoff producers of all-time, ranking fourth among active NHL players (top-10 all-time) with an average of 1.2 points per game in the postseason.
The reason the Stars are not more heavily favoured in this series is questions about health. Two injuries, in particular, are concerning. Top defenceman Miro Heiskanen (63 points) missed Dallas’ last three games with a lower-body injury, although it’s believed he’ll be available for Game 1. Top line centre Roope Hintz (44 points), however, will miss at least the first two games and hasn’t played since suffering a lower-body injury on March 6.
