The Minnesota Wild (22-13-2) head to face the Buffalo Sabres (19-15-2) at KeyBank Center on Saturday. Minnesota is coming off a 5-1 win over the Lightning on Wednesday. The Wild committed five penalties in the game, conceding one power play goal.
Kirill Kaprizov was the top goalscorer for the Wild with two goals. Calen Addison had a goal and two assists to lead the team in scoring. Filip Gustavsson had a great performance with 34 saves (.971%) in the win.
Buffalo is back home for a four-game homestand after an exciting 5-4 overtime win over the Capitals on Tuesday. Tage Thompson scored a hat trick to lead the Sabres. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen only stopped 28 of 32 shots (.875%).
HEAD TO HEAD
The Sabres won both games between the teams last season, including a 5-4 victory in their final meeting in March. Four players had two points for Buffalo. Kaprizov led Minnesota with three points (2G 1A). Craig Anderson got the win despite allowing four goals on 33 shots (.878%).
FACING OFF
Minnesota is averaging 3.19 goals per game for the season, 17th in the NHL, and they are taking on a Sabres team that is allowing 3.39 goals a game (22nd). Meanwhile, Buffalo has found the net 3.94 times a game on average, first in the league, and the Wild are allowing opponents to score 2.76 goals per game (9th).
Expect multiple power play opportunities for the Sabres, as the Wild are averaging 4.73 penalties per game, fourth-most in the NHL. The visitors’ 12.62 penalty minutes a game ranks second-highest. The home team has been penalized 3.92 times a game (16th) for an average of 8.19 minutes (21st).
The Sabres’ 28.15% power play percentage is the third-best in the league, while the Wild rank 12th with a conversion rate of 23.73%. In terms of penalty killing, Minnesota has the league’s 14th-ranked PK% at 79.53%, while Buffalo is 26th at 73.11%.
TOP PERFORMERS:
With 47 points this season, Kaprizov is the top skater for the Wild. He has 22 goals and 25 assists in 37 games. In the net, Gustavsson (8-5-1) is Minnesota’s top goaltender by goals against average. He has a 2.34 GAA, fifth-best in the league, and a .920% save percentage.
Marc-Andre Fleury (13-8-1) leads the Wild in games played in goal. He has a GAA of 2.82 and a save percentage of .904%.Thompson leads the Sabres in scoring with 55 points (3rd in the league).
He has 30 goals (2nd in the league) and 25 assists in 36 games. Anderson (7-5-1) has the best goals against average for Buffalo at 2.61. He has a save percentage of .923%, fifth-best in the league.
HOME AND AWAY
Minnesota is 10-6-1 on the road this season. Buffalo is 8-8-2 at home this season.
SportsTips’ NHL Pick:
Minnesota Wild (-120)
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*Odds correct at time of publication, courtesy of BetMGM.
