Calgary Flames at Minnesota Wild Betting Preview/Prop Picks

All 16 playoff spots in the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs have been claimed, but there is still plenty to play for in the final few games. The Minnesota Wild host the Calgary Flames on Thursday night, and the home team needs a victory in this game.

Calgary comes into this game with 110 points on the year, and they have already wrapped up the Pacific Division crown. The Flames have also won three straight games, and they are trying to take some momentum into the postseason.

Minnesota enters play on Thursday night with 109 points on the year, and they are tied with the St. Louis Blues for second place in the Central Division. The Wild just suffered a disappointing loss earlier this week at the hands of the Arizona Coyotes. 

The Minnesota Wild are the moneyline betting favorites at -120 for this matchup with the Calgary Flames. 

Flames Great on Special Teams

The Calgary Flames do nearly everything well, but it has been their special teams' play that has set them apart this season. Calgary is scoring on the power play over 23 percent of the time, and they have also killed off 83 percent of their penalties.

Johnny Gaudreau and Matthew Tkachuk set the tone for the Flames on the offensive end, but this team gets contributions from everyone. Gaudreau leads the team with 74 assists and 113 points, and Tkachuk has scored 41 goals.

Goaltender Jacob Markstrom might be the most important player on this team as he is giving up just 2.2 goals per game. Markstrom also has nine shutouts on the year and can be a force in the playoffs.

Kaprizov Needs Some Help

Kirill Kaprizov has turned into one of the best offensive players in the NHL as he leads the team with 45 goals and 60 assists. Kaprizov has turned into a one-man show at times for the Wild, though, and that's not going to work in the postseason. 

Minnesota is scoring 3.7 goals per game, but they are also allowing 3.1 goals per night. The Wild are killing off just 75 percent of their penalties, and that is going to be an issue in the postseason.

Marc-Andre Fleury has played well for the Wild since joining the team, but he doesn't always get help from his defense. Fleury might need to take over this game if the Wild will pick up this win.

Flames Win Over the Wild

Both of these teams have been great on the offensive end of the ice, but the difference will come on the opposite end. Minnesota will try to speed up the tempo in this game, but the Flames have become a terrific defensive team.

Calgary doesn't need a win to secure their playoff positioning, but they don't want to lose the momentum that they have built throughout the season. The crowd in Minnesota should give the Wild a boost in this one, but it won't be enough to carry them to a win.

Calgary can really score, and that offense will be on full display in this one. Bet the Calgary Flames -1.5 as they go into Minnesota and deliver the Wild a big loss by at least two goals.

Prop Picks

Minnesota (-155) UNDER 3.5 Goals

Calgary is giving 2.5 goals per game on defense, which ranks No. 3 in the league, while allowing just 28.8 shots per game, which ranks No. 4. Scores have gone UNDER in seven of the Flames’ last eight games at Minnesota.

With Dunkel predicting a Calgary victory by the score of 3-2, take the Wild (-155) to finish UNDER their Vegas team total of 3.5 goals against the Flames.

Joel Eriksson Ek (-120) UNDER 0.5 Points

Ericsson Ek had 49 points during the regular season, which ranked No. 5 on the Wild. The center had 39 points in 48 wins (+/- of 26), while collecting only 10 points in 27 losses (+/- of -10).

With Dunkel predicting Flames victory, take Eriksson Ek (-120) to finish UNDER 0.5 points versus Calgary.

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