With livewires Kirill Kaprizov and Joel Eriksson Ek back from injury, the Wild's offense has a lot more bite, and Minnesota isn't limited to hoping to win by scorelines like 2-1 and 3-2. Matt Boldy has also scored three goals already in this series, and jumping on VGK for a 3-0 lead after the first period (extended to 4-0 of Game 2 suggests Minnesota is very much in business. Vegas has not been controlling center ice or living in the O-zone in the first two games of this series as it usually does. A full-strength Wild seems an even match, perhaps even with an edge if Filip Gustavsson (30 of 32 saves on Tuesday) continues to stay sharp in goal. Play Wild on Money Line

I couldn't help but be impressed with the level of fight and depth I saw first hand from the Wild in the first two games of this series. Vegas looked rather lethargic themselves in Game 2 especially with their defensive assignments and puck handling. With Game 3 being so pivotal I really expect both teams to tighten things up on their back end. Both goalies have shown flashes this series and with some support I expect that to continue. My total on this game is closer to 5.5 under -125 so I'm happy to grab an inflated tag and root for low event hockey in the twin cities

Like Dallas the other night, I tend to think the Wild win outright but won't turn down a home +1 and be fine with a push in an OT loss or the like. Minnesota star Kirill Kaprizov has returned to the form that saw him as the Hart Trophy favorite for a while before injury as he has five points in the first two games. Wild goalie Filip Gustavsson won his final two home RS starts, allowing two goals in each. Minnesota is generally vastly superior defensively on home. The Vegas top line of Jack Eichel, Mark Stone and Ivan Barbashev doesn't have a combined point.