The Minnesota Wild host the Edmonton Oilers in a primetime Wednesday night matchup.
The pregame narrative: Two teams sitting in second place in their respective divisions duke it out in the Twin Cities. I’m backing the Oilers to come away with a win in regulation and the over. I also have a play on Connor McDavid to produce on the power play.
Check out my Oilers vs. Wild picks for Jan. 15.
Oilers vs. Wild picks
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Best bet: Oilers 60-mins moneyline (-163)
The Oilers and Wild have met twice this season, and the road team won each time.
Edmonton has proven it can get the job done, no matter the environment they find themselves in.
- Home: 15-7-1, +8 goal differential
- Away: 12-6-2, +15 goal differential
The Wild, on the other hand, have told a different story this season.
- Home: 11-9-1, -10 goal differential
- Away: 16-4-3, +20 goal differential
The Oilers and the Wild have similar stats overall, with one jarring difference being the power play ranks.
Minnesota owns the league’s 24th-ranked power play, whereas Edmonton sits inside the top 10 (more on this later).
Key stat: Edmonton walloped Minnesota, 7-1, in the previous meeting on Dec. 12.
Quick picks
Over 6 goals (-110): I’m predicting a good old-fashioned barn-burner tonight in St. Paul.
Both teams are atop the league standings with Stanley Cup aspirations this season. And their play as of late backs it up.
Edmonton and Minnesota have combined for 14 wins in their last 20 games.
The head-to-head meetings have intrigued me. Throw defence and goaltending out the window when these teams square off because the overs record is 6-3-1 over the last 10 games.
Filip Gustavsson has been confirmed to get the start in goal tonight, which bodes well for this play.
The Swede is 0-2-0, allowing 10 goals over his last two games.
McDavid over 0.5 power-play points (+130): As previously mentioned, the Oilers’ power play has been lethal this season, operating at over 24%.
Edmonton’s first power-play unit is among the best in the league, with Leon Draisaitl and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins playing alongside McDavid.
McJesus leads the Oilers with 18 power-play points on the year, picking up two in his last four games.
Minnesota owns the fourth-worst penalty kill in the NHL (71.6%).
Picks made at 12:50 p.m. ET on 01/15/2025.
