Penguins at Wild NHL Betting Preview
Ceremony Night for Marc-Andre Fleury in St. Paul
Penguins at Wild NHL Betting Preview
The National Hockey League has just three games in action on Friday night, with the marquee contest being the Pittsburgh Penguins taking on the Minnesota Wild in what will be a special night for future Hall-of-Fame goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury. Let’s take a look and breakdown some key factors for this cross-conference showdown between the Penguins at Wild NHL Betting Preview matchup for Friday night in Downtown Saint Paul.
Pittsburgh Penguins at Minnesota Wild 
Records: (23-17-7, 53 points) vs (22-23-5, 49 points)
Date, time:
Location: Xcel Energy Center, Saint Paul, Minnesota
Streaming: Live Sports Stream
Pens Sliding Along
The Pittsburgh Penguins are looking to make a big second half run toward the Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference, and they made one more step in the right direction on Tuesday night, beating the Winnipeg Jets in a 3-0 victory spearheaded by a 23-save shutout from goalie Tristan Jarry. It was the sixth shutout of the season from Jarry and the 19th of his eight-year career with the Pens.
It will most likely be backup Alex Nedeljkovic getting the start here on Friday in Minnesota, with the team playing Saturday in Winnipeg. “Goalie Ned” has posted decent numbers in 14 starts this season, going 8-3-3 with a 2.60 goals-against average, a .918% save percentage and a shutout.
Veteran forward Jeff Carter got on the scoresheet Tuesday with his sixth goal of the season. The Penguins will need more than just Sidney Crosby and Jake Guentzel to carry the load if they wish to continue their pace in the Eastern Wild Card race.
Giving Flowers in Saint Paul
The Minnesota Wild have been one of the more disappointing clubs in the Western Conference this season, with a record barely above .500, this team, despite being a handful of points from the second Wild Card spot in the West, looks to be possibly selling some pieces off before the Trade Deadline on March 8th.
General Manager Bill Guerin (who was recently named the GM for Team USA to prepare for the 2026 Olympics, which will see the return of NHL players for that tournament) will certainly get a few calls from players around the league and one of those guys who could be mentioned in those same phone calls are one of the players that will be honored tonight in Marc-Andre Fleury.
The 39-year old goaltender, who’s won three Stanley Cups and a Vezina Trophy, will be recognized and honored throughout the night for his accomplishments of playing in over 1,000 games and for becoming the second-most winningest goaltender in National Hockey League history with 552, eclipsing now Islanders head coach Patrick Roy.
There will be a pre-game ceremony to honor Fleury and it’s fitting that his original team, the Pittsburgh Penguins which he spent 13 of his 20 seasons with are in town for the occasion. Fleury has faced his old club eight times, posting a 4-4 record with a 3.19 goals-against average, a .900% save percentage and one shutout.
Penguins at Wild Betting Odds
Sportsbooks have the visiting Pittsburgh Penguins NHL Odds betting odds to win as short favorites against the hosting Minnesota Wild on Friday night priced in the pick’em range around -105 to -110. Pittsburgh has won four straight meetings against Minnesota and nine of the last ten meetings overall.
The Wild have lost eight of their last ten games at home, but have won four of the last six overall. The Penguins have lost eleven of their last 15 games away from the Steel City.
Concluding the Penguins at Wild NHL Betting Betting Preview: The total for this contest is set at 6.5 goals shaded to the Over between the pick’em price range of -110 and -115.
The Pens have been trending Under the total in six of their last seven games overall, including four of their last six games against Western Conference opponents and 15 of their last 20 games against clubs in the Central Division. Minnesota has gone Over the total in six of their last seven meetings with Pittsburgh.
Check out all the updated Pittsburgh Penguins and Minnesota Wild NHL Picks and Parlays, NHL Scores and Odds, NHL Starting Lineups, Standings, futures, Stanley Cup odds, team stats, recent news and betting tips, right here at Point Spreads.
