The Minnesota Wild (41-29-6) travel to face off against the New York Rangers (35-32-7) on Wednesday, April 2nd. This game will be played at Madison Square Garden in New York and televised on MSGS. Both team’s come into this one having won their previous games. Puck drop is set for 7:00 ET.

Wild vs Rangers

The Minnesota Wild Are Coming Off A Win

With a 2-1 overtime win against the Maple Leafs, the Wild improved to 41-29-6. Minnesota, favored on the puck line, didn’t cover, but the total of 3 goals fell short of the pre-game line of 6.

Ryan Hartman and Matt Boldy scored for the Wild, who allowed a goal with just 52 seconds left in the first period. Hartman’s goal came at 9:41 in the first, while Boldy’s game-winner was at 2:14 in overtime.

The New York Rangers Are Coming Off A Win

The Rangers improved to 35-32-7 with a 5-2 road win over the Islanders. As -1.5 goal favorites, the Rangers covered the puck line, and the total of 7 goals surpassed the pre-game line of 6.

Four different players contributed to the Rangers’ scoring, with Artemi Panarin leading the way with two goals. Chris Kreider opened the scoring at 16:16 in the first period with a short-handed goal.

Minnesota Offense Breakdown

Ryan Hartman netted his third goal of the season, getting the Wild on the board at 9:41 in the first period. Matt Boldy followed with his sixth goal, which came 2:14 into overtime to secure the 2-1 win.

Jared Spurgeon contributed with two assists, bringing his season total to three. The Wild fired 33 shots on goal but were held scoreless in the second and third periods. They recorded 15 giveaways in the game.

Rangers Offense Breakdown

Artemi Panarin led the way for the Rangers with his 8th and 9th goals of the season, including an empty-netter. The Rangers fired 40 shots on goal, with Chris Kreider scoring his 8th goal on a shorthanded play. Vincent Trocheck added his 4th goal, while Adam Edstrom found the net for the first time this season.

Mika Zibanejad contributed with his 7th and 8th assists, while Adam Fox picked up his 9th assist on Panarin’s power-play goal in the second period. The Rangers had 14 giveaways in the game.

Minnesota Team Defense

Defensively, the Wild will look to carry over their performance from their previous game, where they allowed just one goal to the Maple Leafs. Filip Gustavsson made 27 saves with a 96.4% save percentage. The defense also contributed 7 takeaways and 22 hits. The only goal they allowed came on a power play late in the first period.

New York Team Defense

Igor Shesterkin had a standout performance with 35 saves and a 94.6% save percentage. Defensively, the Rangers recorded 10 takeaways, 19 hits, and 18 blocks. They allowed two goals, both in the 2nd period, but kept the Islanders scoreless in the 1st and 3rd periods.

Wild vs Rangers Trends

• Across their five previous road games, Minnesota has an puck line mark of 2-3. Their straight up record in these matchups was 1-4 while averaging 1 goals per game.
• Although New York has a straight up record of 1-4 in their last five home games, they have not held up as well vs the puck line going 1-4. The team averaged 2 goals per game in these games.
• Going back to their previous three games as the underdog, New York has an puck line mark of 1-2 while going 0-3 straight up.
• As the betting favorite, the Wild have an puck line mark of just 2-3 in their last five games. Minnesota posted a straight up mark of 2-3 in these matchups.

Wild vs Rangers Prediction

For a moneyline bet, I’m backing the Rangers to secure a victory over the Wild at home. With the moneyline currently set at -158, I’m locking in my bet on the Rangers straight-up.

If you’re looking for my recommendation on the puck line, I suggest taking the Wild to cover. Even if the Rangers manage to win outright, this game is expected to remain competitive, and the Wild should cover the puck line.

When considering the over/under line, which is currently at 5.5 goals, we believe that this game will go over that threshold, and we recommend wagering on the over.

All odds are courtesy of Action247 Sportsbook. Good luck!!

* All odds are provided by Action247 Sportsbook and all odds subject to change.**All views expressed are my own. My picks are my own and are not a guarantee, bet at your own risk.Action247 does not warrant the accuracy of completeness of the information, text, graphics, links or other items contained within these post.