Game 1 saw both goaltenders put up phenomenal performances and as it took double overtime to decide it. Minnesota did just enough to pull out the win. They’ve claimed home-ice advantage for now but can they go up 2-0 in this series? 

Wild vs. Stars NHL Playoffs Betting Odds

The Wild are 9-3 in their last 12 games played against teams from the Central Division and 14-3 in their last 17 games when coming off just one day of rest. Unfortunately, they are just 1-4 in their last five games when going up against a team with a winning record on the season. As for the total, the over is 7-3-1 in Minnesota’s last 11 games played against teams from the Central Division. 

Dallas has won four out of their last five games against teams from the Western Conference and have won eight out of their last 10 games against teams from the Central Division. When it comes to their total, the under is 35-14-5 in their last 54 games when going up against a team with a winning record on the season. 

Minnesota Wild

The Wild pulled out a crazy one over the Stars in double overtime in Game 1 and a win here would really give them control of the series. Minnesota got an excellent performance from goaltender Filip Gustavsson, who saved 52 shots with 12 of them coming in the third period and an additional 17 coming in the first overtime. 

The game-winner didn’t show up until the second overtime when Ryan Hartman had a beautiful deflection to get the puck to slip past Stars goalie Jake Oettinger. It was their 48th shot of the night on the net and had finally slipped past Oettinger for the first time since early on in the second period. 

The key for the Wild was to show that they can dictate the pace. The teams met up four times in the regular season and the Stars won three times, scoring at least four goals in those games. They only managed two in Game 2. The Stars were seventh in the NHL in goals per game at 3.41. If Minnesota keeps this a low-scoring, tight and defensive series, they should have the edge. 

Dallas Stars

Gustavsson turned away 52 shots on the net from Dallas. It was a frustrating night for their offense as they had flurry of opportunities and just couldn’t get one to slip past him when they needed it. One of those opportunities saw a wide-open shot on the net get deflected away at the last second from a Wild stick to save the game. Chances are that if they get the same number of shots in Game 2, they’ll get more behind him.

One of the major storylines that came out of Game 1 was involving veteran center, Joe Pavelski. Pavelski was forced to leave the game in the second period after Matt Dumba delivered a brutal blow to him that sent him down with an injury. Dumba got hit with a five-minute major, but officials changed it to a minor. The review didn’t stop Stars center Max Domi to rush over and deliver a few punches to Dumba and getting assessed with a 10-minute misconduct. Pavelski’s status is key here as he was third on the team in points this year with 77. He’s questionable for Game 2.

Game 2 Prediction: Who Will Win Wild vs. Stars?

WILD

Away

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STARS

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