The rollercoaster life of a Minnesota sports fan lives on.
The Timberwolves gave the state another Charlie Brown moment of infamy on Thursday night against the Memphis Grizzlies. The hope is things go better for the Minnesota Wild, who also are going to get their opportunity to provide postseason memories this year.
First up in the playoffs, the St. Louis Blues. The first-round series became locked in on Thursday as well. The only question is who gets home ice?
Both teams are tied with 105 points, but the Wild have the edge with one game in hand. Minnesota, which is coming off a 6-3 victory over Vancouver, has the chance to build on that advantage with a home game against Seattle on Friday night. St. Louis is off until a matchup at Arizona on Saturday night.
"We did a lot of things right."
— Minnesota Wild (@mnwild) April 22, 2022
Yes 👏 we 👏 did, Coach!
🗣 Dean on the game as a whole and keeping consistent through the home stretch.
Link to full presser ➡️: https://t.co/t0Zc3TX8oX pic.twitter.com/i2wergC5yc
The win was the Wild’s 49th of the season, which ties a franchise mark and it also extended Minnesota’s home streak to an 11-0-1 mark over the past dozen games. The Wild are have just two losses in regulation over the past 23 games — a 17-2-4 run.
Thursday’s win was the Wild’s 28th at the Xcel Energy Center this season and the team could tie a franchise mark with a win against the Kraken. The Wild also have 58 points at home and have four games left in St. Paul during the regular season, giving the team a shot at the franchise mark of 63 home points that was set during the 2006-07 season.
The first-year Kraken are making an inaugural visit to St. Paul. Minnesota split with the Kraken in two road games earlier this season, losing 4-1 and then winning 4-2.
The Kraken feature three former Wild players – Ryan Donato, Victor Rask and Carson Soucy as well as two native Minnesotans, Will Borgen and Karson Kuhlman, who played at St. Cloud State and the University of Minnesota-Duluth, respectively.
Betting odds
WynnBET has Minnesota favored by 1.5 goals to close out what is back-to-back games at the Xcel Energy Center.. Minnesota also is the heavy favorite on the moneyline at -290. The Kraken are the underdog at +245 and the over/under for the matchup is listed at six goals.
Upcoming Wild schedule
Sunday , April 24: @Nashville, 7 p.m. CST
Tuesday, April 26: Arizona, 7 p.m. CST
Thursday, April 28: Calgary, 7 p.m. CST