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(NHL) Minnesota@Chicago
1* Under 5 -140
Wild HC Jacques Lemaire has not let his choice for opening-day goalie be known, but a good guess would be that he keeps it in the family with nephew Manny Fernandez. Although both he and Roloson are top-notch, Manny had the better preseason with a .929 SP and 2.06 GAA in 5 games, and he had the much better playoff run last year. As a team Minnesota scored on just 9.9% of their shots in the preseason, while allowing goals on 8.8% of opponents' shots. After scoring exactly 1 goal in their last 4 playoff games last year, they have been shut out in 3 of 9 preseason games. Last season, their games averaged a total of just 4.59 goals, well below the league average of 5.31 gpg. Jocelyn Thibault will be in net for the Hawks. He got off to a very hot start last year before fading after the break. Although he struggled early in the preseason with a .857 SP and 3.30 GAA, he finished on an up-note with two straight wins. The Blackhawks managed success on just 9.1% of their shots in 9 preseason games, while opponents scored 11.6% of the time. The Wild will be playing tonight without their top three scorers from last year. Gaborik and Dupuis are holding out, and Ronning is no longer there. They are also without the services of RW Richard Park, out with a knee injury. Andrew Brunette is forced to anchor an offense without much depth. Chicago suffers from similar depth problems. Eric Daze is coming off an injury-shortened year, and along with Steve Sullivan, leads a Chicago starting lineup that includes 6 rookies tonight. Although one of those rookies is Calder Trophy candidate Tuomo Ruutu, don't expect much production without a couple of key trades. Last year, both Minnesota and Chicago were near the bottom of the league in power play goals, but above the league average in penalty kills. Minnesota allowed just 43 PP goals, third best in the NHL behind Anaheim and Jersey. Five of the last 6 meetings between Chicago and Minny have gone under. In four meetings last season, the over appeared just once, but that was with Steve Passmore in goal, not Thibault. Chicago saw the over in just 13 of 41 home games, and just 10 of 33 of Thibault's home starts. Minnesota's trap game, good goaltending from both sides, and lack of firepower on the ice should lead to a another low-scorer tonight.
1* Under 5 -140
Wild HC Jacques Lemaire has not let his choice for opening-day goalie be known, but a good guess would be that he keeps it in the family with nephew Manny Fernandez. Although both he and Roloson are top-notch, Manny had the better preseason with a .929 SP and 2.06 GAA in 5 games, and he had the much better playoff run last year. As a team Minnesota scored on just 9.9% of their shots in the preseason, while allowing goals on 8.8% of opponents' shots. After scoring exactly 1 goal in their last 4 playoff games last year, they have been shut out in 3 of 9 preseason games. Last season, their games averaged a total of just 4.59 goals, well below the league average of 5.31 gpg. Jocelyn Thibault will be in net for the Hawks. He got off to a very hot start last year before fading after the break. Although he struggled early in the preseason with a .857 SP and 3.30 GAA, he finished on an up-note with two straight wins. The Blackhawks managed success on just 9.1% of their shots in 9 preseason games, while opponents scored 11.6% of the time. The Wild will be playing tonight without their top three scorers from last year. Gaborik and Dupuis are holding out, and Ronning is no longer there. They are also without the services of RW Richard Park, out with a knee injury. Andrew Brunette is forced to anchor an offense without much depth. Chicago suffers from similar depth problems. Eric Daze is coming off an injury-shortened year, and along with Steve Sullivan, leads a Chicago starting lineup that includes 6 rookies tonight. Although one of those rookies is Calder Trophy candidate Tuomo Ruutu, don't expect much production without a couple of key trades. Last year, both Minnesota and Chicago were near the bottom of the league in power play goals, but above the league average in penalty kills. Minnesota allowed just 43 PP goals, third best in the NHL behind Anaheim and Jersey. Five of the last 6 meetings between Chicago and Minny have gone under. In four meetings last season, the over appeared just once, but that was with Steve Passmore in goal, not Thibault. Chicago saw the over in just 13 of 41 home games, and just 10 of 33 of Thibault's home starts. Minnesota's trap game, good goaltending from both sides, and lack of firepower on the ice should lead to a another low-scorer tonight.
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