Wild vs. Penguins: Minnesota looks to complete homestand with eighth-straight win
By Tim Johnson
40-18-10. Thursday, March 31. Wild -1.5. 92. Bally Sports North . 41-20-4. 98. 7 p.m. CST
Cam Talbot has won his last eight starts in net for the Minnesota Wild. Now he will attempt to help the Wild to an eighth-straight win overall.
Talbot, who was named the NHL’s First Star of the Week on Monday, will get the start as Minnesota closes out a franchise-record nine-game homestand on Thursday against the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Talbot has h a 2.13 goals-against average and .924 save percentage in his last nine appearances dating to March 3. He ranks 10th in the NHL with 27 wins and has a 2.80 GAA and .911 SV% for the year with two shutouts.
Talbot is 1-3-3 with a 3.24 GAA and a .903 SV% in seven career starts against the Penguins
The Wild’s seven-game winning streak is the longest current one in the NHL and has propelled the team into the solid position of second place in the Central Division.
7 IN A ROW, LET'S GO!! #mnwild pic.twitter.com/VPhG0g03co
— Minnesota Wild (@mnwild) March 30, 2022
Minnesota beat the Penguins 5-4 in a shootout in the first meeting of the season on Nov. 6 in Pittsburgh. The Penguins have dominated the series recently, however. Minnesota is 5-11 in the last 16 matchups between the teams.
The Penguins enter Thursday in third place in the Metropolitan Division behind Carolina and the New York Rangers. The Penguins have lost three of their past four games, two of which came against the Rangers.
Wild forward and former Ranger Mats Zuccarello has six goals and 20 points in his career against Pittsburgh to lead current Minnesota players.
The Wild begin a four-game road trip on Saturday against Carolina.
Betting odds
WynnBET has Minnesota favored by 1.5 goals for the second straight contest. Minnesota also is the slight favorite on the moneyline at -115. PIttsburgh is the underdog at -105 and the over/under for the matchup is listed at 6.5 total goals.
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Upcoming Wild schedule
Saturday, April 2: @Carolina, 6 p.m.
Sunday, April 3: @Washington, 6 p.m.
Tuesday, April 5: @Nashville, 7 p.m.