Previously, the Minnesota Wild had the Stanley Cup betting odds reputation of being good enough to make it and flop. The Wild are synonymous with playoff failure. By contrast, the Vegas Golden Knights are known for their 2023 Stanley Cup championship. Additionally, the VGK is celebrated as the best major professional sports expansion team in history. So far, Minnesota has given Vegas all they can handle. The Wild and Golden Knights split their first four games. Now the series shifts back to a pivotal fifth game on Tuesday. Next will be an elimination game on Thursday.
2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs First Round Update: Minnesota Wild vs. Vegas Golden Knights
| Date and Time: | Tuesday, April 29, 2025, 9:30 PM ET. |
|---|---|
| Location: | T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas, NV. |
| TV Coverage: | ESPN |
| Team | Spread | Total | ML | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minnesota Wild | +1½ -136 | 5½ -125 | +191 |  |
| Vegas Golden Knights | -1½ +116 | 5½ +109 | -216 | |
| ||||
Minnesota Wild vs. Vegas Golden Knights Series Schedule
- Game 1: Golden Knights 4, Wild 2
- Game 2: Wild 5, Golden Knights 2
- Game 3: Wild 5, Golden Knights 2
- Game 4: Golden Knights 4, Wild 3 (OT)
- Game 5: Tuesday, April 29, Wild at Golden Knights, 9:30, ESPN
- Game 6: Thursday, May 1, Golden Knights at Wild, TBD
- x-Game 7: Saturday, May 3, Wild at Golden Knights, TBD
x-if necessary
Minnesota Wild vs. Vegas Golden Knights Series Update
Ivan Barbashev chipped in a rebound at the 17:26 mark of overtime to give the Vegas Golden Knights a 4-3 victory over the Minnesota Wild. Specifically, the matchup was Game 4 of their Western Conference first-round series Saturday afternoon in Saint Paul, Minn.
Reilly Smith set up the game winner, picking up a loose puck after Jake Middleton whiffed trying to clear the puck from his zone. Subsequently, Smith then fired the puck toward the net where Barbashev put in the rebound of a Nicolas Roy try. It was the first playoff overtime winner of his career. Now, the series is tied 2-2 with Game 5 set for Tuesday night in Las Vegas.
Namely, Tomas Hertl and Roy joined Barbashev with a goal and an assist. Defenseman Shea Theodore also scored for Vegas while Adin Hill made 29 saves. Also, Marcus Foligno scored for the third straight game. And then Marco Rossi and blueliner Jared Spurgeon also scored for Minnesota. Filip Gustavsson finished with 42 saves.
Vegas then took a 3-2 lead midway through the period. Following Stone’s pass into the slot caromed in off the skate of Hertl. During the play, Hertl was rolling on the ice with Hartman in front of the net. But the Wild came right back to tie it just 54 seconds later. Specifically, they scored on a wraparound goal by Spurgeon, setting the stage for overtime.
Minnesota Wild
Minnesota had NHL rankings of 25th for goals scored and 20th for power play efficiency. In comparison, on defense, the Wild had sportsbook NHL rankings of 16th for goals against and 31st for penalty killing.
To conclude the regular season, the Minnesota Wild were 45-30-7 straight up and 35-43-4 over/under the total. Also, Minnesota was 7th in the Western Conference playoff standings, 19 points behind the Winnipeg Jets.
Vegas Golden Knights
Vegas had NHL rankings of 5th for goals scored and 2nd for power play efficiency. In comparison on defense, the Golden Knights had NHL rankings of 4th for goals against and 27th for penalty killing.
To conclude the regular season, the Vegas Golden Knights were 50-22-10 straight up and 10 over/under the NHL Playoff betting odds total. Also, Vegas was second in the Western Conference playoff standings, six points behind the Winnipeg Jets.