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The Minnesota Wild head to Enterprise Center on Monday night for an 8:00 p.m. ET puck drop on ESPN+, and this one feels a little strange because only one side really has anything left to sort out emotionally. Minnesota is 45-23-12, already clinched a playoff berth earlier this month, and is essentially headed for a first-round series against Dallas. St. Louis is 34-33-12 and was eliminated from playoff contention on Saturday, so the Blues are now playing out the schedule at home.
That does not make the game meaningless. The Wild still have enough form and enough offensive talent to want a cleaner tune-up heading into the postseason, while the Blues have at least shown some life lately with wins over Colorado, Anaheim, and Chicago in three of their last five. The season series is tied 1-1 as well, so this is not a total mismatch, even if the broader team profiles lean toward Minnesota.
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Minnesota Wild vs St. Louis Blues Odds
These are the current listed betting lines for this matchup, and bettors should always monitor the latest NHL odds before puck drop because goalie confirmation can still shift the market. ESPN’s odds page also shows Minnesota in the favorite range for this game, though books have moved the number around during the day.
| Team | Moneyline | Puck Line | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minnesota Wild | -127 | -1.5 (+186) | O 6.0 (-115) |
| St. Louis Blues | +108 | +1.5 (-233) | U 6.0 (-106) |
Minnesota Wild Betting Form
Minnesota still looks like the more trustworthy team, even after the 2-1 loss to Nashville on Saturday. The Wild are 3-2 over their last five, but the underlying season profile is much stronger than St. Louis. They average 3.28 goals per game, rank third in the league on the power play at 25.4 percent, and have been one of the better teams in the West at turning offensive-zone time into repeat chances. That matters in a road spot like this, because it gives them more than one way to win if the game script gets awkward.
There is also enough high-end skill to keep the betting case simple. Kirill Kaprizov has 45 goals and 89 points, Matt Boldy is up to 42 goals, and Mats Zuccarello has quietly piled up nine assists over his last five games. The Minnesota Wild stats and results page fits naturally here because the form line has mostly been solid despite the loss in Nashville. Availability is worth watching, though, so keep an eye on the Minnesota Wild injury report before puck drop with Joel Eriksson Ek, Jared Spurgeon, Mats Zuccarello, and Zach Bogosian all listed day to day on ESPN.
The projected goalie is Jesper Wallstedt, though he is still unconfirmed. If he gets the start, Minnesota still carries a fairly stable profile in net. Wallstedt is 17-9-6 with a 2.63 goals-against average and a .913 save percentage, and the Wild have been comfortable letting him play behind a team structure that generally stays intact. That is a decent setup against a St. Louis offense that has spent much of the year searching for consistent scoring depth.
St. Louis Blues Betting Form
The Blues are not a total fade, and that is probably the first thing worth saying. They have gone 3-2 in their last five, including a 5-3 win at Chicago on Saturday, and their recent stretch has had a little more bite than their full-season record suggests. Jimmy Snuggerud has given them a jolt, and Robert Thomas is still the hub of most of what works offensively. The problem is that the larger season profile remains mediocre. St. Louis is averaging just 2.68 goals per game and has had issues on both special teams for most of the season.
That special-teams gap is one reason the Wild deserve favorite status here. St. Louis owns a 17.8 percent power play and a 76.3 percent penalty kill, and that is a rough combination against a team with Minnesota’s man-advantage ceiling. The St. Louis Blues schedule and stats page tells the same story: some recent competitiveness, but not enough season-long reliability. It is also still worth tracking the St. Louis Blues injury report, though the biggest confirmed absence remains Torey Krug.
The real counterargument for St. Louis is the goalie. Joel Hofer is the projected starter and has been very good for long stretches, with Daily Faceoff listing him at 22-13-5 with a 2.59 goals-against average and a .909 save percentage overall. There is even a stronger recent case than that, because Hofer had been on a heater heading into the weekend. If you want to talk yourself into the home dog, that is the path. Hofer keeps it tight, the Blues play a little freer with no pressure, and Minnesota maybe does not push all the way through 60 minutes.
Minnesota Wild vs St. Louis Blues Matchup Breakdown
This game really comes down to whether you trust Minnesota’s better full-team profile more than St. Louis’ home-goalie angle. At 5-on-5, the Wild have the cleaner edge. They generate more shots, score more often, and have the far more dangerous power play. St. Louis can absolutely hang around, but it has not shown enough all season to consistently win these matchup-quality battles unless goaltending swings it. For bettors who like framing games through team profile and market price, the NHL betting guide is a useful companion for this type of spot.
The season series adds a bit of tension because it is tied 1-1. Minnesota won the opener 5-0, then St. Louis answered with a 3-1 road win on March 1. So there is no clean head-to-head edge to lean on. What I keep coming back to is how different the teams look on special teams and how much that matters in a game with a short favorite. Minnesota has the power-play punch to create separation from a one-goal game. The Blues have not had that same margin-creating ability.
The total is where the handicap gets a little less tidy. Your listed number is 6.0, while parts of the live market have been shading closer to 5.5, which tells you bettors are respecting the goalie side of this matchup. I get that. Wallstedt is serviceable, Hofer can absolutely steal one, and the Blues do not naturally drag many teams into track meets. Still, Minnesota’s top-end finishing talent and special-teams edge make me a little hesitant to force the under. Bettors thinking beyond this one game can also use the Stanley Cup betting guide for context on how playoff-bound teams tend to be priced late in the year.
Minnesota Wild vs St. Louis Blues Predictions and Best Bets
My lean is Minnesota on the moneyline. It is not an all-in type of spot because there is a real chance St. Louis gets another strong Hofer performance and turns this into a low-event coin flip, but the Wild still have the better offense, the much better power play, and the more stable overall team profile. That usually wins out over 60 minutes, even on the road. The latest NHL previews page is useful if you are comparing this number to the rest of the slate, but this matchup still lands as a reasonable favorite position.
I would be more cautious with the puck line. Minnesota can certainly win by two, especially if St. Louis starts pressing late, but this does not feel like the kind of matchup where I want to ask the road team for margin when the home goalie is capable of keeping things uncomfortable. The moneyline is cleaner. It gives you the Wild’s better scoring depth and better special-teams outlook without needing a perfect game script.
As for the total, I lean slightly over 6.0 only because Minnesota has enough offensive quality to do some damage even in a slower game, and St. Louis has been more competitive lately than its season-long scoring average suggests. That said, it is not my favorite angle. If Hofer is sharp early, this could just as easily settle into a 3-2 type of night. So I would rather trust Minnesota’s overall edge than try to be too clever with the total.
Best Bet: Minnesota Wild moneyline (-127).
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NHL Picks and Handicappers on ScoresAndStats
If you are building a larger card, today’s NHL picks are a good way to compare late-season value across the board instead of forcing too much exposure into one game. This time of year, motivation, goalie rotation, and price sensitivity all matter more than usual, and it helps to stack games side by side.
The top sports handicappers section and the handicapper leaderboard are useful for a different reason. They let you compare different betting styles and recent results in one place, which is helpful when some bettors prefer favorites, others lean into totals, and a few are just hunting plus-money dogs late in the season.
And for bettors who want a stronger paid card, premium NHL picks are there as well. The biggest edge in April is often not finding more action, but filtering out the weaker positions and focusing on the games where the matchup and the number actually line up.
