Wild vs. Blues Prediction and Odds for Game 3 (Wild Prevail in Defensive Battle)

The St. Louis Blues host the Minnesota Wild in Game 3 of their NHL Playoffs first round series tonight at 9:30 PM EST.

Minnesota earned a 6-2 victory in Game 2 after getting shut out 4-0 in the first game. Now, the series will head to St. Louis, where the Blues posted an impressive 26-10 regular season record.

We'll likely se Marc-Andre Fleury in net for the Wild and Ville Husso for the Blues. Who has the edge between two electric teams looking to take an all-important 2-1 series lead?

Let's check out the odds from WynnBET Sportsbook to help find out ahead of this Wild vs Blues matchup:

Wild vs. Blues Odds, Puck Line and Total

Puck Line:

• Wild: +1.5 (-230)
• Blues: -1.5 (+190)

Moneyline:

• Wild: +115
• Blues: -135

Total:

• 6.5 (Over 105/Under -115)

Wild vs. Blues Prediction and Pick

It's tough to get a feel for a series when both of the first two games are blowouts for each team. After getting completely shut down in Game 1, Minnesota's offense rebounded in a huge way to score six times in Game 2.

A pair of stout goalies will be in net for each squad. Ville Husso is expected to get the nod for St. Louis after recording a shutout in his playoff debut. He stopped all 37 shots he saved, some in spectacular fashion:

Minnesota will counter with Marc-Andre Fleury, who is no stranger to sensational postseason performances. His play has undeniably waned of late, having given up four goals in three of his previous four starts prior to limiting the Blues to two goals in Game 2. But he's fully capable of shutting St. Louis' offense down in such a critical game.

The Wild had a stellar defense all season. They ranked second in xGA (expected goals against) while St. Louis was the fourth-worst in the league. And as good as Husso was in Game 1 for the Blues, he really struggled in Game 2, giving up five goals with just 27 saves.

St. Louis was an excellent home team all year, but the Wild are the better outfit here. They've won three of their past four as underdogs and are much, much better defensively. I think Minnesota builds off the momentum from Game 2 to prove they are indeed the superior team.

But I also like under. Matchups get tighter in the postseason and with how good Minnesota's defense is, I expect another strong performance. 6.5 is a tad too high for my liking, so I'll back the Wild to prevail in a low-scoring contest.

Pick: Wild (+115) and Under 6.5 (-115)

Follow all of Joe Summers' betting picks here.