Vegas Golden Knights vs Minnesota Wild: Game 3 preview, predictions and odds

The Vegas Golden Knights are on the road to play the Minnesota Wild in Game 3 of their first-round matchup in the Stanley Cup Finals. Puck drop is set for 9 p.m. ET.

Vegas won Game 1 by a score of 4-2, and it was Minnesota who evened up the series with a 5-2 road win.

Golden Knights vs Wild: Head-to-head & key stats

• Minnesota went 0-3 against Vegas this season, and is 1-1 in the playoffs
• Vegas is allowing 2.6 goals per game
• The Wild went 22-17-2 at home
• The Golden Knights are averaging 3.34 goals per game
• Minnesota is allowing 2.87 goals per game
• The Wild are averaging 2.74 goals per game
• Vegas went 21-13-7 on the road

Vegas Golden Knights vs Minnesota Wild: Preview

Vegas struggled mightily in Game 2 and lost home ice advantage, so the Golden Knights will need to steal a game on the road here. In Game 2, Vegas was led by Noah Hanifin and Tomas Hertl each had a goal.

The Golden Knights will start Adin Hill, who went 32-13-5 with a 2.47 GAA and a .906 SV%. In his career against Minnesota, he’s 3-4 with a 2.29 GAA and a .906 SV%. In the playoffs, he’s 1-1 with a 3.03 GAA and a .833 SV%.

Minnesota, meanwhile, played well in Game 2. The Wild will once again turn to Filip Gustavsson in the net. Gustavsson went 31-19-6 with a 2.56 GAA and a .914 SV% this season. In his career against Vegas, he’s 1-3-1 with a 2.76 GAA and a .911 SV%. In the playoffs, he’s 1-1 with a 2.52 GAA and a .914 SV%.

In Game 2, the Wild were led by Kirill Kaprizov who had two goals and an assist, and Matt Boldy had a goal and an assist as Minnesota’s best two players stepped up. Marcus Foligno and Mats Zuccarello also scored.

Golden Knights vs Wild: Odds & Prediction

Vegas is a -162 favorite while Minnesota is a +136 underdog, and the over/under is set at 5.5 goals.

The Golden Knights didn’t play well in Game 2 as Vegas started slow. The Golden Knights should be fired up and play much better to start the game and get out to an early lead.

Hill, meanwhile, should play much better than he did in Game 2 for the Golden Knights to get the win.

Prediction: Vegas 4, Wild 2.

Golden Knights vs Wild: Betting Tips

Tip 1: Vegas ML (-162)

Tip 2: Over 5.5 goals (-18)

Tip 3: Matthew Boldy 3+ shots on goal (-135)

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alt=”Cole Shelton” height=”72″ width=”72″>

Cole is an NHL, NFL and College Sports reporter at Sportskeeda with over 7 years of experience writing for publications like CBC, USA Today, SMG, BJPENN, Sherdog and SB Nation.

An NHL fan his whole life, Cole played rep hockey in Canada from age 5 until 17 and grew up rooting for Martin St. Louis and the Tampa Bay Lightning. His all-time favorite players are Vincent Lecavalier and Steven Stamkos, while Jon Cooper is his favorite coach of all time.

Cole attended Sheridan College and received his journalism degree in 2019. After decades of watching and reporting, he considers his knowledge of sports as his primary strength. He ensures that the same story has been reported by at least two reputed reporters before creating it.

Cole enjoys playing golf and spending time with friends and family when not reporting breaking stories. His favorite sports moment is from the 2010 Olympics, when Sidney Crosby scored the golden goal in overtime to beat Team USA for the gold medal.

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Edited by Cole Shelton