MINNESOTA WILD VS. ANAHEIM DUCKS – 11/5/2019

What happened to the Wild? This was a perennial playoff contender with one of the best home ice advantages in hockey not too long ago. That’s not the case this season, as Minnesota is tied for last with just 9 points overall.

The Ducks are no sure thing on Tuesday however. Their offense has been very downtrodden as of late and getting scoring opportunities has been scarce (30th in SOG). Anaheim has won 2 of 3 though.

Minnesota Wild

Two things that have doomed Minnesota this season have been a) not being able to score and b) not being able to stop the other team from scoring. Besides that, things are going great.

The Wild rank 29th in scoring, netting just 2.3 goals per game. On the other end of the ice they are allowing 3.5 scores per. Minnesota has lost 3 straight and 4 of 5 heading into the Honda Center on Tuesday.

On the bright side, the Minnesota offense has looked better as of late. The Wild have scored 3+ in 3 of 4 games – unfortunately they also have a 1-2-1 record over that span.

Another reason it’s tough to back Minnesota as the +115 underdog vs. Anaheim is because the Wild are just 1-8 away from St. Paul on the season.

It will be Devan Dubnyk in net Tuesday. His .883 save percentage isn’t exactly appealing to bettors either. Dubnyk is just 2-6-1 on the season and has allowed 4+ goals in 4 of the last 6 outings.

Anaheim Ducks

Anaheim looks like good value at home in this one. The Ducks have gone 6-1-1 at the Honda Center this season. They did lose an OT contest to Chicago at The Pond on Sunday night however.

Another huge area of concern for Anaheim backers is that offense. The Ducks rank 21st in the league in scoring which includes 2nd to last in SOG and 29th in the power play.

Anaheim has been held to 2 goals or less in 6 of the last 8. Usually a matchup with Dubnyk and the Minnesota defense is good for what ails you however. The total of 5.5 looks like it will be a good ‘over’ play.

Then again, it’s hard to bet an ‘over’ with Anaheim’s John Gibson between the pipes. Gibby has a very respectable 2.51 GAA and a .925 save % but thanks to the Ducks (lack of) offense that’s good enough for just a 6-6 record.

Gibson has shown some vulnerability as of late though. He served up 4 goals and 5 goals in his last two starts of October but did start November off with a bang in a 39 save performance against Vancouver.

NHL Betting Trends:

Wild are 6-14 last 20 Tuesday games
Wild are 16-40 last 56 overall
Wild are 1-10 last 11 road games
Ducks are 9-2 last 11 home games
Ducks are 7-2 last 9 games as a favorite
Wild are 1-4 last 5 H2H games

Free Anaheim Ducks vs. Minnesota Wild NHL Prediction:

It should be a solid Anaheim victory in this one. The Minnesota offense has been better as of late, but not good enough to counter a poor night from Dubnyk.