by Chuck Sommers
Thursday, Jan 19, 2023
Time: 7 p.m. ET
Venue: PNC Arena, Raleigh, NC
Where to watch: BSSO, BSWI, BSN
Opening Odds at USA Sportsbooks
DraftKings: CAR -180, MIN +155
FanDuel: CAR -172, MIN +142
BetMGM: CAR -165, MIN +140
Caesars: CAR -169, MIN +143
Season record
Wild: 25-14-4
Hurricanes: 27-9-8
We’ve hit the halfway mark in the NHL season. Yes, you read that right. We’re really hit that halfway mark that quickly. If you blinked, you probably missed a lot of good things happen in the hockey world. And with football about to be out of the way, look for our champion handicappers to get back on the rink. Oskeim Sports is on a 13-5-0 run in the NHL over the last 30 days, as is Will Rogers. Sean Murphy has also cashed in with a 16-10-0 run in the last month. Make sure you’re following our champion handicappers at bigal.com to get on this winning action!
Wild - Hurricanes preview, prediction and analysis
The Minnesota Wild will try for their 4th consecutive victory when they travel to Raleigh to take on the Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday.
The Wild have completely flipped the script from their three-game losing streak that included a shootout loss to the New York Rangers and an overtime loss to the Buffalo Sabres. Since then, Minnesota has held its next three opponents to two goals or fewer, including their most recent game, a 4-2 victory over the Washington Capitals on Tuesday.
Minnesota scored three times in the second. With Jared Spurgeon scoring twice in the period along with Jonas Brodin to turn a 1-0 deficit into a 3-2 lead going into the third. Filip Gustavsson made the 34 saves in a very efficient bounce back effort in the final two periods.
"It's one thing we preach about on this team is that everyone can contribute, and in the [offensive] zone it's anyone's turn," Spurgeon said after he and fellow defenseman Brodin accounted for three goals. "Tonight, the [defensemen] had the chances, and they were fortunate to go in."
I have been contemplating this for the last few days and not that I don't think they ultimately wouldn't, but I could see Minnesota making a couple of moves at the trade deadline. And I think if there was ever a time for this organization to go big in terms of acquisitions that could help them in the playoffs, this would be it. There's a team in Vancouver that's desperately trying to go into a fire sale without actually saying they are going into a fire sale. It would not shock me in the least if Minnesota jumped on any of those opportunities.
Speaking of Vancouver, that was the last team the Hurricanes faced 5 days ago but ultimately lost 4-3 in a shootout at home. Carolina was favored by -280 but still found a way to lose to one of the more unitizing teams in the National Hockey League. Carolina jumped out to a 2-0 lead thanks to goals from Paul Stastny and Jordan Martinook, but ultimately lost because they didn't figure out how to defend A6 on five with 20 seconds to go. Pyotr Kochetkov made 29 saves in a loss for the rookie.
"We weren't very good. We were flat, tired. You could just tell," Carolina coach Rod Brind'Amour said. "We were fighting it all night. They were good, but we were not."
There has to be a little bit of frustration as it pertains to Carolina. Max Pacioretty works his way back into the lineup after an Achilles injury wiped out his entire offseason, and now he gets hurt and suddenly Carolina is back to square one with its forwards. Carolina has played average hockey over the last 10 games by winning five and losing five on the money line, but the fact that they have gotten points in two of those losses at least eases the burden a little bit. But there's still a lot to be desired for Carolina and the only way that true potential is going to be unlocked is if Pacioretty is available.
Prediction
Minnesota is humming along right now and is playing really good hockey. No matter whether they're playing on the road or at home it always tends to be a strong outing especially if you can get your forwards to play the kind of defense that Minnesota does. So for this one I am taking the road team. Wild 4, Hurricanes 3
Betting trends
Wild are 1-4 in their last five trips to Carolina.
Favorite is 14-4 in the last 18 meetings
Home team is 20-8-1 in the last 29 meetings.
Projected lines
Wild:
Kirill Kaprizov -- Sam Steel -- Mats Zuccarello
Matt Boldy -- Frederick Gaudreau -- Ryan Hartman
Marcus Foligno -- Joel Eriksson Ek -- Jordan Greenway
Brandon Duhaime -- Connor Dewar -- Ryan Reaves
Jake Middleton -- Jared Spurgeon
Jonas Brodin -- Matt Dumba
Jon Merrill -- Calen Addison
Marc-Andre Fleury
Hurricanes:
Teuvo Teravainen -- Sebastian Aho -- Seth Jarvis
Andrei Svechnikov -- Paul Stastny -- Martin Necas
Jordan Martinook -- Jordan Staal -- Jesper Fast
Jesperi Kotkaniemi -- Derek Stepan -- Stefan Noesen
Jaccob Slavin -- Brent Burns
Brady Skjei -- Brett Pesce
Calvin de Haan -- Jalen Chatfield
Pyotr Kochetkov
Don't miss our champion handicappers' free picks and expert hockey picks today. And if you enjoyed this Minnesota Wild - Carolina Hurricanes prediction, be sure to drop by every day for our daily NHL projections and previews.
Chuck Sommers
About the Author:
Chuck Sommers has camped outside of sportsbooks since he can remember, learning the tricks and nuances of the trade. He still has nightmares of betting $5,000 on the Raiders in the Tuck Rule game but has since turned that to 25 years of veteran handicapping greatness. You can find him mostly in the shadows at the Red Rock or Aliante casinos wondering if the over is cashing on any given Sunday.
