Colorado Avalanche vs. Minnesota Wild Odds, Picks & Prediction - Game 3

In one of the two games on the docket, the Colorado Avalanche are on the road as they travel to take on the Minnesota Wild in Game 3 of their Western Conference semifinals series Saturday night and we have you covered with our Avalanche vs. Wild prediction. Colorado won a wild series opener, prevailing 9-6 at home, Sunday night to draw first blood in the series. The Avalanche followed up with a 5-2 triumph in Game 2 at home Tuesday night.

Will the Avalanche take a 3-0 stranglehold in the series or can Minnesota find a way to play their game on home ice? Let’s break down this Avalanche vs. Wild matchup.

Avalanche Seeking Seventh Straight Win to Start Playoffs

Colorado reeled off a sixth straight victory to start the postseason as they drubbed Minnesota in Game 2 Tuesday night. The Avalanche now try to take a 3-0 series advantage as they travel to the Land of 10,000 Lakes for Games 3 and 4.

In Game 2 Tuesday night, Colorado took the lead early and never trailed to skate away with a 2-0 series advantage. The Avalanche were outshot 10-7 in the opening period but skated off with a 2-1 lead at the first intermission. Martin Necas opened the scoring with his first goal of the postseason at 2:51 off assists from Nathan MacKinnon and Brett Kulak. After Minnesota tied the score, Gabriel Landeskog gave Colorado a 2-1 lead with a power play goal. His third of the playoffs, at the 8:24 mark of the period, gave Colorado the lead for good. MacKinnon and Necas drew assists on that goal.

In the second period, the Avalanche faced a 10-9 shot disadvantage but scored the lone goal of the period to lead 3-1 after 40 minutes. Nicolas Roy made it a 3-1 game with his third goal of the postseason at 1:24 of the period. Ross Colton and Brock Nelson assisted on that goal. In the third period, Colorado was outshot 11-7 but outscored Minnesota 2-1 to secure the victory.

MacKinnon made it a 4-1 game with his fourth goal of the playoffs, on the power play, at 13:18. Nazem Kadri and Landeskog drew the assists on the goal. After the Wild cut the margin to 4-2, Valeri Nicushkin closed the scoring with his first of the playoffs. That goal, which hit an empty net at 19:55, was assisted by Kulak and Brent Burns. Scott Wedgewood made 29 saves for Colorado, who was outshot 31-23, in the win. Wedgewood (6-0-0, 2.12 GAA, .923 save percentage) is expected to be in net here.

Wild Trying to Close Gap in Series

Minnesota was unable to slow Colorado’s offensive onslaught again on the road and now find themselves down 2-0 in the series. The Wild need a win here in order to avoid a 3-0 series deficit and get on the board. Perhaps playing on home ice can reverse their fortunes.

Minnesota had their opportunities in Game 2 of the series but couldn’t do enough damage to earn the win. The Wild held a 10-7 edge in shots in the opening period but trailed 2-1 after 20 minutes of action. Just six seconds after going down 1-0, Kirill Kaprizov tied the game at 2:57 with his third goal of the postseason. Ryan Hartman and Mats Zuccarello drew assists on the marker. The Wild gave up the go-ahead goal later in the period. In the second period, Minnesota held a 10-9 shot edge but gave up the only goal to trail 3-1 at the second intermission.

The third period saw the Wild own an 11-7 shot advantage only to fall 2-1 on the scoreboard to wind up with the loss. After giving up a goal to trail 4-1, Marcus Johansson cut the margin to two goals at 14:33 with his third goal of the playoffs. Danila Yurov and Daemon Hunt drew the assists on the marker. The Wild surrendered an empty-net tally in the final seconds to close the scoring. Filip Gustavsson made 18 saves for Minnesota, who held a 31-23 advantage in shots, in the loss. Jesper Wallstedt (4-3-0, 2.81 GAA, .903 save percentage) is slated to start in goal again here.

Stats to Know

Colorado is:

• 1st in the league in the postseason in scoring offense (4.50 goals per game)
• 3rd in goals against (2.17)
• 4th in power play success (22.2%)
• 7th in penalty killing (85.7%)

Minnesota is:

• 2nd in the league in the postseason in scoring offense (3.88 goals per game)
• 13th in goals against (3.63 goals per game)
• 11th in power play success (13.3%)
• 15th in penalty killing (59.4%)

Avalanche vs. Wild Prediction

One thing we’ve seen in this series is that goals have been plentiful. The Avalanche piled up 14 goals in the first two games in the series while the Wild tallied eight. Colorado recorded four straight overs heading into this contest, dating back to Game 3 against the Kings in the opening round. Meanwhile, Minnesota has a 6-1-1 mark to the over in the postseason, including each of their last four games. We've seen the way that both teams are offensively and the numbers in the first two games. As a result, it’s hard to see anything more than a repeat of the status quo. Therefore, take the over in this contest as a result.

Our Prediction: Avalanche vs. Wild Over 6 (-120, BetMGM)