The Boston Bruins were dealt a dose of reality on Thursday night when the Montreal Canadiens burst out to an early 5-0 lead and chased Jeremy Swayman from the net. It was an ugly performance from the former first-place team in the Atlantic Division, but it was easy to just chalk it up as a rare off night. The Minnesota Wild are coming into this game on a great run, defeating both the Montreal Canadiens and Toronto Maple Leafs this week on their run through the Atlantic Division. They are now 8-0-2 over their last 10, which puts the Bruins in a compromising position to lose their second straight game and fall further down the division.
There is no reason not to bet on the Wild in this game with how they have been playing, and they have already defeated the Bruins once this season. However, it’s hard to get a read on whether Boston are actually in the same class as the league’s top teams this season -- especially following Montreal’s domination on Thursday. The Bruins can beat anyone when Swayman is on, and I think he bounces back in a big way on Saturday night. Whether or not that results in a win is one thing, but either way this could be a low-scoring matchup.
Wild vs Bruins prediction: Under 6.5 (-135) available at time of publishing. Playable at that number.
