Chicago Blackhawks vs Minnesota Wild: the Wild to Beat the Hawks Again

Minnesota has beaten Chicago in both of their previous head-to-head meetings this season. Will Derek King's team be able to beat the Wildcats on the third attempt? Check the teams’ conditions and expert betting tips. Several betting options are available!

Chicago is having another mediocre regular season, at risk of missing the playoffs again. The Hawks have been doing relatively well for a long time, often clinging to points, but then it became a rollercoaster ride. They had a six-game losing streak in December and January, then won four straight games before losing six more in their seven previous meetings. Alas, the Red and Black have longer defeated series than their successful ones. That's why they currently are 14th in the Western Conference standings, while their playoff distance already looks terrifying and might become unreachable very soon.

Minnesota continues to progress actively. They already managed to break into the playoffs and looked very good in the cup battles last season, and now they are ready to take another step in their development. This regular season is going to be very productive for them. They had eight failures at the end of 2021 but then suffered a serious setback, losing five games in a row. Fortunately, the losing streak was halted, and they scored in nine straight games, eight of which were victories. This strong run has allowed Minnesota to climb up to third place in the Western Conference standings, but they still have some games left to play.

Chicago and Minnesota are very different teams at the moment. The Hawks have a disappointing season and have suffered six losses in their last seven meetings. The Wild are still going strong and have never left the ice without a point in their previous nine games, winning eight times during that stretch. Dean Evason's wards are also favoured by the statistics of personal meetings, as they were more robust than the Red and Black in both of the tournaments this season. As a result, we recommend a bet on the victory of Minnesota.

Minnesota is one of the most prolific teams in the regular season. In the 40 played meetings, Dean Evason's wards have already scored 156 pucks (3.90 average per game), which is a very high figure for such a long distance. At the same time, Chicago has severe defensive issues, as evidenced by their 151 missed pucks in 45 games (3.36 average per game). Moreover, in the two previous matches this season, the Wild scored nine times against the Hawks (4.50 average per game), and that is why we consider that the best option to predict the individual total of Minnesota over 3.5.

Kevin Fiala has another solid season and has an excellent chance to set a personal record in his NHL career. The Swiss already scored 54 points (23 goals + 31 assists) during the 2019/20 season. Now the 25-year-old forward has 32 points (12 goals + 20 assists), but he's only played in 40 games so far and still has almost half of the regular season ahead of him. Moreover, in 11 games, he has not left the ice without a productive action, which confirms his fantastic fit. It is worth paying attention to the bet on the total over 0.5 points of Kevin Fiala.