Minnesota Wild vs Tampa Bay Lightning Prediction, 10/8/2026 NHL Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Minnesota Wild vs Tampa Bay Lightning

Date: Thursday, October 8, 2026

Location: Benchmark International Arena in Tampa, FL

TV: Wild+, WXPX-TV

Odds/Point Spread: Wild (+124) Lightning (-146)

The Minnesota Wild (2-0-1) are en route to Benchmark International Arena on Thursday where they will try to beat the Tampa Bay Lightning (2-1-0). The odds on this game have the Wild at +124 and the Lightning open at -146. The betting total comes in at 6.

The Minnesota Wild were on the wrong end of the scoreboard with a 3-2 defeat against the Sabres their last time on the ice. The Wild could have played much better offensively in the defeat. While out there on the ice, they earned a goal on 2 of the 20 shots they put on goal. In addition, they had 4 power play opportunities and were able to net 1 goal. Minnesota amassed 4 penalty mins for this matchup.

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In reference to their scoring, the Minnesota Wild have racked up 9 goals (15th in hockey) on the campaign and have surrendered 5. For the season, they have accumulated 5 points and their points percentage sits at .833. Minnesota skates onto the rink with 11 power play chances and they have tallied 4 goals out of those advantages, earning them a percentage of 36.36%. While playing at even strength, the Wild have allowed the opponent to score 5 goals while notching 5 when they are on offense. Minnesota has attempted 80 shots and is the owner of a shooting percentage of 11.3%. The Wild have had 75 shots tried against them and have earned a save percentage of .933. Minnesota Wild opponents have amassed 9 power play opportunities (21st in professional hockey) and have come away with 0 goals in those attempts.

The man protecting the goal in this game is Jesper Wallstedt. Wallstedt has been involved in 43 games throughout his professional hockey career. He has compiled a mark of 22-12-7 and he has gotten the start in 41 games. The opposition has scored 109 goals versus Wallstedt in his career and his average for goals against per game is 2.66. Wallstedt has seen 1,233 shot attempts taken against him and has gathered 1,124 total saves. His save percentage currently sits at .912 during his 103 mins guarding the cage. For his career, Wallstedt has accumulated 27 quality starts and his percentage for quality starts is .659.

Their last time out, Tampa Bay went up against the Flyers in a matchup where the Lightning earned a win by a tally of 4-1. They had 3 power play opportunities in this outing but didn't put one in the back of the net. The Lightning netted 4 goals of the 36 shots on goal they tried.

The Lightning have earned 8 goals at even strength and 0 goals (28th in pro hockey) while on the power play. Tampa Bay has put up 90 shots (15th in the NHL) and has accumulated a shot percentage of 8.89%, while allowing the other team 61 shots. For the year, the Tampa Bay Lightning have notched a total of 8 goals, 4 points, and a points percentage of .667. They have allowed 7 goals to be scored by of a combination of 6 goals at even strength and 1 goal while they had less men on the ice. They have earned 13 chances on the power play and they have a power play rate of 0.00%. They have recorded a penalty kill rate of 85.71% on their opponents 7 opportunities on the power play, and their save percentage comes in at 88.5%.

For the opposition you are likely to see Andrei Vasilevskiy patrolling the crease. He has gathered 16,176 stops out of 17,649 shots tried, which gives him a rate of .917. Vasilevskiy has compiled a career record of 372-179-39 and has been in net for 601 games. He was named a starter in 591 contests and has played for a total of 35,229 minutes. Vasilevskiy's quality start rate sits at 59.2% and he has accumulated 350 quality starts in his pro career. Opponents are averaging 2.49 goals per contest and he has given up 1,473 goals overall.

Who will win tonight's NHL game against the spread or moneyline?

Guy's Pick: Take Tampa Bay (-146)

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