{"id":555321,"date":"2026-04-18T15:04:26","date_gmt":"2026-04-18T15:04:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/555321\/"},"modified":"2026-04-18T15:04:26","modified_gmt":"2026-04-18T15:04:26","slug":"nhl-predictions-minnesota-wild-vs-dallas-stars-game-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/555321\/","title":{"rendered":"NHL Predictions: Minnesota Wild vs Dallas Stars, Game 1"},"content":{"rendered":"

Welcome back to NHL Predictions. Each day, our writers here at\u00a0Last Word On Hockey look at the games and give in-depth analysis. Our team breaks down the key matchups, storylines, and stats, then makes predictions based on how they might play out. Our featured game of this edition is the Dallas Stars hosting the Minnesota Wild. Be sure to check out more\u00a0NHL Predictions<\/a>, as our writers continue this series throughout the 2025-26 Stanley Cup Playoffs.<\/p>\n

NHL Predictions
\nMinnesota Wild vs Dallas Stars
\nRegular Season Head-to-Head: Wild 2-2 Stars
\nHow to Watch<\/a>:\u00a0US TV:\u00a0ESPN; Fan Duel Sports North; Victory+; Fan Duel Sports Wisconsin; ESPN+. Canada TV: Sportsnet; TVA Sports.<\/p>\n

Time: 5:30 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time (EDT)<\/p>\n

It\u2019s the opening game<\/a> of the series between the Dallas Stars<\/a> and the Minnesota Wild<\/a> in today\u2019s NHL predictions. These two teams have gone \u201call-in\u201d<\/a> and are looking to make a deep run in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. However, one of these talented teams will be going home after the first round.<\/p>\n

These two clubs played each other about as even as two teams could possibly be. Dallas and Minnesota split the regular season series and were even with each team scoring 13 goals. Both clubs are also have near identical statistics in goals scores, power play, and penalty killing,<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s take a look at the statistics and storylines going into this Game 1 edition of NHL predictions.<\/p>\n

The Wild Story<\/p>\n

Minnesota is coming into this game with a 6-4 record in the last 10 games entering the postseason. However, the Wild did lose three consecutive games before beating the Anaheim Ducks<\/a> in the regular season finale.<\/p>\n

Jesper Wallstedt<\/a> is the expected starter for the Wild. However, always check social media before locking in a daily fantasy starter. Wallstedt seems to be getting the nod over Filip Gustavsson<\/a> in between the pipes.<\/p>\n

The Wild have plenty of dynamic skaters like Kirll Kaprizov, Matt Boldy<\/a>, and Quinn Hughes<\/a>. Kaprizov was the team\u2019s leader in goals (45), assists (44) and points (89). However, the depth is going to have to come through if they want to advance.<\/p>\n

The Stars Story<\/p>\n

Dallas is entering the postseason with a 7-2-1 record in its previous 10 games. This includes a five-game winning streak for the Stars, who have made the last three Western Conference Finals.<\/p>\n

Jake Oettinger<\/a> is the probable starter for Dallas. Oettinger is hoping to prove himself after being surprisingly pulled in the final game of last season against the Edmonton Oilers.<\/a> The American netminder\u2019s save percentage was at .899 in regular season, so he\u2019s looking to improve upon that.<\/p>\n

Dallas has plenty of young firepower and is deadly on the power play. Wyatt Johnston<\/a> and Jason Robertson<\/a> were tied for the regular season lead in goals scored with 45. However, Robertson had the team lead in points with 96.<\/p>\n

Prediction<\/p>\n

Game 1 of any series is always an important one in any series. That will be in the case for this series. Both clubs will want to get off to a great start in this series and take the opener.<\/p>\n

These two teams are very even on paper. However, Oettinger\u2019s postseason experience should carry the Stars to win the win in the series opener. Despite this, fans should buckle up for a long series.<\/p>\n

Prediction: Stars win 3-2.<\/p>\n

Best Bets<\/p>\n

We close out this round of NHL predictions for Game 1 with some prop bets of the night. The over\/under for the first game between the Wild and the Stars is 5.5, and we like the under in this game.<\/p>\n

As for individual props, go with Boldy to get a power play point for Minnesota. On the Dallas side of things, take Mikko Rantanen<\/a> to get at least a point.<\/p>\n

Main photo by: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

Please play responsibly, check for your local rules and age restrictions; some jurisdictions require ages 21+. Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Welcome back to NHL Predictions. Each day, our writers here at\u00a0Last Word On Hockey look at the games…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":555322,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5118],"tags":[20557,1315,5,424,1800,795,537,161,38,1317,5280,4,162],"class_list":{"0":"post-555321","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-minnesota-wild","8":"tag-2026-stanley-cup-playoffs","9":"tag-dallas-stars-predictions","10":"tag-hockey","11":"tag-jake-oettinger","12":"tag-jason-robertson","13":"tag-jesper-wallstedt","14":"tag-kirill-kaprizov","15":"tag-minnesota","16":"tag-minnesota-wild","17":"tag-minnesota-wild-predictions","18":"tag-minnesotawild","19":"tag-nhl","20":"tag-wild"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nhl\/116426328691985128","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/555321","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=555321"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/555321\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/555322"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=555321"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=555321"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=555321"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}