Wild vs Oilers: Prediction, Team News and Canadian Odds

Wild vs Oilers brings together two of the three best records in the Western Conference by points percentage. The goaltender with the best numbers of the four on show is Jesper Wallstedt, a 23-year-old carrying Minnesota’s net on his own. Minnesota visits Rogers Place on Tuesday 20 October.

How to watch

National and regional listings are not always the same thing in Canada. Our how to watch the NHL in Canada page explains which applies to you.

Wild vs Oilers odds

Moneyline prices from 3 Canadian sportsbooks, captured on 19 October. American odds throughout.

These are stored prices rather than live ones, and a hockey line moves the moment a starting goaltender is confirmed, so check before you bet. Availability varies by province: PlayAlberta is a provincial platform rather than open-market books, and the private sportsbooks operate where they hold a licence. Our NHL betting sites page sets out which operates where, and who is expected in net is on our projected NHL starting goalies page.

Jesper Wallstedt has started eight of nine and has a .922

Minnesota is 6-2-1 and has won two in a row, the last 2-1 at home to Columbus on Sunday. Its 21 goals against are the fewest of any club in tonight’s Canadian games.

Wallstedt has started eight of the nine at a .922 and a 1.99. He’s carrying the workload because Filip Gustavsson is on injured reserve with a hip problem. Calvin Pickard has the other start and conceded five.

The injury list runs to seven, level with Edmonton’s and behind only Toronto’s eight among tonight’s Canadian games. Brock Faber is out with a skull injury, Jared Spurgeon and both Folignos are unavailable, and Nico Sturm has a concussion. Minnesota is 6-2-1 anyway.

How they compare

Minnesota finished eleven points clear of Edmonton last season on a far better defensive record. Edmonton’s answer was the best power play in the league at 30.6 per cent. That’s more than five points above anyone else in tonight’s Canadian games. Those are two different ways to win and both have worked.

Edmonton has scored 37 goals in eight games

The Oilers are 6-1-1 and put six past Utah on Saturday. Connor McDavid took two goals and three assists. Thirty-seven goals in eight games is the highest of any club in tonight’s Canadian games.

Zach Hyman is back. He scored on the power play in that Utah game after a spell out. He and Jake Walman have both come off the injury list. Edmonton still has seven unavailable, including Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Frederik Andersen.

The soft spot is still the net. Devon Levi is 4-1-0 at a .898 and Tristan Jarry 2-0-1 at a .873, and Jarry took the Utah start. Neither is within twenty points of Wallstedt’s save percentage.

Minnesota owns this series and has won three of the last four

Minnesota leads the all-time series 72 wins to 43 and has taken three of the last four. That includes a 7-3 win at Rogers Place and a 1-0 shutout in the same building.

Two of Minnesota’s three recent wins came in Edmonton. One was a shutout against a side now scoring four and a half a game.

Team news

Who starts in goal is an open question. Minnesota has given Wallstedt eight starts (.922) and Pickard one (.800), and Edmonton has split its starts between Levi (five, .898) and Jarry (three, .873). Form and selection are different questions, and only one of them is settled before the morning skate.

We keep the rest of the league on our NHL injury report.

Players to watch

Jesper Wallstedt, Minnesota. Eight starts, 6-1-1, a .922 and a 1.99, with Gustavsson on injured reserve. The best goaltender on the ice tonight by some distance.

Connor McDavid, Edmonton. Two goals and three assists against Utah on Saturday, and 23 points in eight games.

Zach Hyman, Edmonton. Back in the lineup, and he scored on the power play in his first game back.

Score prediction

Edmonton Oilers 4-3 Minnesota Wild. Edmonton is at home and scoring more than anyone, but Minnesota’s goaltending and this head-to-head keep it to one goal.

Wild vs Oilers prediction

This is the closest call on tonight’s card. Edmonton is 6-1-1, at home, with 37 goals in eight games and the best power play in hockey last season. Minnesota has seven players out.

Against that, Minnesota has won three of the last four including a 7-3 and a 1-0 in this building. Wallstedt’s .922 is twenty-four points better than either Edmonton goaltender. Our lean: Edmonton, and the over if the total sits at 6 or lower. Edmonton’s games have averaged 7.6 goals, though the shutout in the head-to-head is a warning against leaning on that too hard.

The NHL power rankings puts both clubs against the other 30, and the rest of Tuesday’s games sits on the NHL schedule.

19+ (18+ in AB, MB and QC). Picks are opinion, not advice, and odds change constantly. Availability varies by province. Please play responsibly. ConnexOntario: 1-866-531-2600 for Ontario residents; see your province’s helpline for resources elsewhere.