Minnesota Wild vs New Jersey Devils 12/2/21 NHL Picks, Predictions, Odds

The New Jersey Devils and Minnesota Wild meet Thursday in NHL action at the Xcel Energy Center. The New Jersey Devils need a win after losing six of their last eight games. The Minnesota Wild look to build on their four-game winning streak. 

The New Jersey Devils are averaging 2.9 goals per game and are scoring on 12.7 percent of their power play opportunities. Andreas Johnsson leads New Jersey with 9 goals, Jesper Bratt has 12 assists and Dougie Hamilton has 68 shots on goal. Defensively, the New Jersey Devils are allowing 2.9 goals per game and are killing 80 percent of their opponent’s power plays. Jonathan Bernier has allowed 20 goals on 232 shots faced, and Mackenzie Blackwood has allowed 24 goals on 285 shots.

The Minnesota Wild are averaging 3.7 goals per game and are scoring on 14.3 percent of their power play opportunities. Ryan Hartman leads Minnesota with 12 goals, Kirill Kaprizov has 18 assists and Kevin Fiala has 74 shots on goal. Defensively, the Minnesota Wild are allowing 3 goals per game and are killing 81.3 percent of their opponent’s power plays. Cam Talbot has allowed 46 goals on 534 shots faced, and Kaapo Kahkonen has allowed 15 goals on 131 shots.

The Devils are 5-13 in their last 18 road games and 2-6 in their last 8 overall. The Wild are 37-14 in their last 51 games as a favorite and 39-16 in their last 55 games as a home favorite. The over is 4-1 in Devils last 5 overall. The over is 6-1 in Wild last 7 overall. The Devils are 4-0 in the last 4 meetings in Minnesota and 1-4 in the last 5 meetings.

The New Jersey Devils just can’t get out of their own way during this losing stretch, and they’ve been absolutely terrible on the road this season. The Minnesota Wild are playing their best hockey of the season right now, the offense is on fire, and they’ve been elite on their home ice dating back to last season. Two teams heading in different directions. Give me the Wild and somewhat reasonable price.