The New Jersey Devils and the Minnesota Wild meet in NHL action from Xcel Energy Center on Thursday night.

Devils Win Back-To-Back Games

The New Jersey Devils come into this game looking to build on back-to-back wins after a 4-3 win over Minnesota last time out. Jack Hughes leads the Devils in scoring with 18 points including a team-high 13 assists as well as 5 goals while Jesper Bratt has 14 points with 6 goals and 8 assists and Tyler Toffoli has 10 points with a team-high 7 goals. Dougie Hamilton has 6 points with 3 goals and 3 assists and Timo Meier has 7 points of his own with 6 assists. Erik Haula also has 6 points with 5 goals on the year. Vitek Vanecek has gone 4-2 with a 3.24 GAA and an .895 save percentage while Akira Schmid is 1-0-1 with a 4.07 GAA and an .863 save percentage this season.

New Jersey Devils Team Facts

• The Devils have lost three of their last four games as favorites against opponents on a losing streak.
• The Devils have failed to cover the puck line in each of their last six games following a home win.
• The Devils have won the second period in each of their last four games following a win.
• The ‘Over 1.5 Goals Period 2′ market has hit in 20 of the Devils’ last 21 games following a home win.

New Jersey Devils Player Prop Facts

• Jesper Bratt has recorded at least one point in each of the Devils’ last seven games.
• Tyler Toffoli has scored at least one goal in four of the Devils’ last five games.
• Jesper Bratt has recorded an assist in each of the Devils’ last five games against Central Division opponents.
• Jack Hughes ranks 1st in the league for Points (18) this season.

Wild Lose 3rd Straight

The Minnesota Wild come into this game on the heels of the loss to New Jersey last time out, looking to get revenge here. Joel Eriksson Ek has a team-high 10 points with 5 goals and 5 assists, while Kirill Kaprizov and Mats Zuccarello each have 9 points with Kaprizov and Zuccarello each having 2 goals and a team-high 7 assists. Ryan Hartman also has 9 points with a team-high 6 goals as well. Filip Gustavsson has posted a 2-2-1 record with a 4.36 GAA and an .885 save percentage while Marc-Andre Fleury is 1-2-1 with a 3.25 GAA and an .888 save percentage this season.

Minnesota Wild Team Facts

• The Wild have lost each of their last six games against Metropolitan Division opponents.
• The Wild have covered the puck line in 12 of their last 14 games as underdogs against opponents on a winning streak
• The Wild have lost the third period in five of their last six games as home underdogs following a road loss.
• The ‘Over 1.5 Goals Period 1’ market has hit in each of the Wild’s last five games as underdogs.

Minnesota Wild Player Prop Facts

• Marcus Johansson has recorded an assist in five of the Wild’s last six games.
• Ryan Hartman has scored a goal in four of the Wild’s last five games against the Devils.
• Marcus Foligno has recorded a point in each of the Wild’s last four games.
• Joel Eriksson Ek ranks T2nd in the league for Power Play Goals (3) this season.

Matchup/League Facts

• The Minnesota Wild ranks 32nd in the league for goals against per game this season (4.11).
• The Minnesota Wild ranks T31st in the league in penalty kill percentage this season (67.86%).
• The New Jersey Devils ranks 1st in the league in power play percentage this season (42.42%).
• The New Jersey Devils ranks 2nd in the league for goals per game this season (4.13).

Chris’ Pick

I’m looking at New Jersey here. Both of these teams have had defensive issues in recent games, but the offensive issues have stuck with the Wild while New Jersey is scoring in bunches and has one of the highest-powered offenses in the NHL this season. I think this price is a gift, so give me the Devils.