Two points separate a surging Minnesota group from the Central Division summit, and their next test comes in Nashville on Wednesday night against the Predators. The Wild arrive with efficient special teams and a forward core finishing at a high clip, while the Predators fight to prolong their two-game winning streak. Here, I break down this matchup in the NHL and give you my Wild vs Predators prediction.
Our Wild vs Predators Pick
Wild moneyline
Confidence: 3/5
Game Snapshot
- Matchup: Minnesota Wild vs Nashville Predators
- Date & Time: Wednesday, February 4, 2026, 8:00 PM ET
- Venue: Bridgestone Arena, Nashville, TN
- Broadcast: ESPN+
Key Storylines
Recent form
- Minnesota has won four straight games coming into this contest, including a win over the Montreal Canadiens in their last outing.
- Nashville has won two straight games, defeating the St. Louis Blues 6-5 in their most recent game.
Goaltending
- Wild: Filip Gustavsson has 19 wins with a 2.58 goals against average heading into this contest. He is expected to get the start as the Wild look for their fifth win in a row.
- Predators: Juuse Saros leads the Predators with 21 wins and a 3.13 goals against average to date. The Wild have the goaltending advantage if these two end up starting, but Saros is playing well enough lately to make this an interesting contest.
Key skaters
- Minnesota: Kirill Kaprizov sits at 69 points to lead the Wild. He also leads Minnesota in goals with 32 on the season so far.
- Nashville: Ryan O’Reilly leads the Preds with 53 points. Steven Stamkos paces the club with 27 goals. Roman Josi continues to drive offense from the back end and logs major minutes in all situations.
- Injuries to monitor: Minnesota lists Jonas Brodin as out until early March, with Marcus Foligno and Jesper Wallstedt recently noted as ill but tracking day to day.
Betting Trends & H2H
- These teams are 1-1 against each other this season, splitting their two meetings in Minnesota.
- Minnesota is 16-8-3 on the road so far this season.
- The Predators enter this contest with a 15-12-2 record on their home ice this season.
Wild vs Predators Model Projection
Score Projection: Minnesota Wild 4 – Nashville Predators 2 Win Probability: Minnesota 57%, Nashville 43%
Final Thoughts
Minnesota owns the clearer edges across five-on-five finishing and special teams, with Kaprizov and Boldy driving a more potent offense and a more efficient power play. Nashville still threatens through O’Reilly, Stamkos, and Josi, but a leaky defense often means that Saros must be the best player on the ice for the home side to cash. With Gustavsson’s steadier form and the Wild’s deeper top six, I’m backing Minnesota on the moneyline and I lean Over 6 goals as well.
