Lightning Carry a Perfect Home Mark Into Minnesota's Barn
Tampa Bay has yet to solve the road, and the Central-leading Wild have yet to lose in regulation at home.
Written before the game
Two of the better starts in hockey collide in St. Paul. Minnesota sits first in the West at 12-3-3 and has won three straight; Tampa Bay arrives at 10-3-2, fourth in the East, on a two-game run.
The Wild have earned their spot. Over their last ten games they have created far more than they have given up: their chances have been worth 4.14 goals a night by expected goals (how many goals a team's chances are usually worth), against 2.67 allowed. The Lightning also come out ahead, but by less: 3.84 for, 3.09 against.
That gap matters more given where this one is played. Tampa Bay is perfect at home at 8-0-0 but just 2-3-2 on the road, while Minnesota is 5-0-1 in its own building.
For Minnesota to take over, it needs to keep the Lightning's chances to the trickle it has allowed lately and let Kirill Kaprizov and Quinn Hughes push the pace. For Tampa Bay, the path is getting the first goal, a spot where it has gone 8-0-1, and leaning on Andrei Vasilevskiy to close the difference. One Wild watch item: Michael McCarron is questionable after leaving a recent game.
