Sabres vs Wild

Kirill Kaprizov and the Wild roll into this one on a seven-game winning streak and an 11-1-1 November heater, capped by Friday’s 3-2 shootout win over Colorado in which Kaprizov scored twice and Jesper Wallstedt stopped 39 shots.  Buffalo, by contrast, has dropped two straight in regulation — 4-2 in Pittsburgh and then an ugly 5-0 home loss to New Jersey — and now has to fly to St. Paul for the second leg of a back-to-back after being shut out for the third time this season.  The current ESPN rosters confirm Minnesota’s core of Kaprizov, Matt Boldy, Joel Eriksson Ek, Brock Faber and a hot Filip Gustavsson (2.80 GAA, .903 SV%) is intact, while Buffalo leans heavily on Tage Thompson, Alex Tuch, Owen Power and Bowen Byram but is missing key depth with Josh Norris, Jiri Kulich and Michael Kesselring on injured reserve and Mattias Samuelsson in concussion protocol. Historical matchup data also tilts toward Minnesota’s stars: Kaprizov has 6 goals and 4 assists in 7 career games against Buffalo, while Thompson has managed just 1 goal and 4 assists in 11 games versus the Wild.  Add in Buffalo’s poor 1-6-2 road mark and Minnesota’s strong 2.78 goals-against per game team defense, and laying the moderate -155 moneyline with the Wild is justified, though not cheap, making this a B+ confidence/value play rather than an auto-fire A-level spot.Odds and availability are subject to change. This bet was made at 29/11/2025 09:39

With Buffalo’s offense sputtering and the Wild playing a smothering defensive style, Under 6 at -105 profiles as the better side of this total. The Sabres were blanked 5-0 by the Devils on Friday despite outshooting them 42-23, and they’ve now scored only two third-period goals over their last two outings while immediately boarding a plane for St. Paul.  Minnesota, meanwhile, has allowed just 2.78 goals against per game this season and has stacked five shutouts already behind the Gustavsson/Wallstedt tandem, with Gustavsson posting a 2.09 GAA and .920 save percentage in November.  Injuries to Wild forwards Vladimir Tarasenko, Marcus Foligno, Vinnie Hinostroza and Marco Rossi trim some of their secondary scoring punch, while Buffalo’s own absences (Norris, Kulich, Kesselring, and the day‑to‑day Samuelsson) weaken transition and finishing on the other side, nudging the likely game script toward a structured 3-1 or 4-1 type result rather than a track meet. Given Minnesota’s seven-game win streak built largely on controlling pace and scoring first in a long run of games, plus Buffalo’s road struggles and fatigue spot, the Under 6 at -105 earns a solid B grade for a balanced mix of likelihood and price, even if a late empty-netter always keeps the sweat real at this number. Odds and availability are subject to change. This bet was made at 29/11/2025 09:39

Given how Minnesota has been winning lately, the puckline angle leans toward Wild -1.5 despite the heavy -170 price. Over their current seven-game streak, the Wild have multiple multi-goal victories — including 5-0 in Pittsburgh, 3-0 versus Winnipeg and Friday’s statement win over Colorado — driven by a top-heavy but lethal attack featuring Kaprizov, Boldy and Eriksson Ek and backed by a defense headlined by Faber, Jonas Brodin and Jared Spurgeon. Buffalo’s 1-6-2 road record and fresh 5-0 home drubbing, combined with travel and the loss of key contributors like Norris and Kulich plus the uncertainty around Samuelsson’s availability, raise real blowout risk if the Sabres fall behind early and have to open up.  Kaprizov’s long-term success versus Buffalo and the Wild’s strong overall goal differential (66 goals for, 64 against) suggest Minnesota is more likely to extend a lead than merely nurse a one-goal edge, while Thompson’s relatively muted historical production against the Wild hints that Buffalo’s star may not consistently drag this one to a one-goal game. ([statmuse.com](https://www.statmuse.com/nhl/ask/minnesota-wild-goals-against-per-game-this-season?utm_source=openai)) Still, a puckline favorite at -170 is expensive in a league full of one-goal finishes, so Wild -1.5 gets a B-: attractive for upside if you believe the current form gap is real, but clearly riskier and less efficient than the straight moneyline. Odds and availability are subject to change. This bet was made at 29/11/2025 09:39