Columbus Blue Jackets at Minnesota Wild NHL Predictions

2026-10-18 • Grand Casino Arena

Minnesota Wild 2 - 1 Columbus Blue Jackets

📊 Pre-Game Predictions

Win Probability

MIN: 65.4%

CBJ: 34.6%

Expected Goals

MIN: 3.61

CBJ: 2.67

Total Goals

Median: 6.3

Over 5.5: 64%

Over 6.5: 48%

🥅 Goalie Matchup

MIN

Jesper Wallstedt - 11-2-3 | 0.928 SV% | 2.21 GAA

CBJ

C. Talbot

Stat	MIN	CBJ
Season SV%	0.928	—
Last 5 SV%	—	—
SV% vs Opponent	—	—
GAA	2.21	—

Last 5 / vs opponent shown when available in goalie stats. Confirmed goalie row used when available; otherwise current projected starter is shown.

Goalie Game Metrics

Team	Goalie	SA	Saves	GA	SV%	xGA	HD Faced	GSAx
MIN	Jesper Wallstedt	14	13	1	92.9%	1.22	0	0.22
CBJ	C. Talbot	35	33	2	94.3%	4.56	3	2.56

SA uses shots on goal plus goals. xGA, high-danger faced, and GSAx use modeled scoring attempts against. GSAx is xGA minus goals against.

Head-to-Head History

Model accuracy in this matchup: 55% • MIN at home vs CBJ: 4-2

Date	Score	Winner	Model Pick
2026-10-18	MIN 2 - 1 CBJ	MIN	MIN
2025-12-18	CBJ 2 - 5 MIN	MIN	MIN
2025-10-11	MIN 4 - 7 CBJ	CBJ	CBJ
2024-10-19	CBJ 1 - 3 MIN	MIN	CBJ
2024-10-10	MIN 3 - 2 CBJ	MIN	CBJ

Shot Quality by Period

Period	Team	Shots	High Danger	xG
1	MIN	23	0	1.64
1	CBJ	9	0	0.40
2	MIN	20	1	1.66
2	CBJ	9	0	0.53
3	MIN	14	2	1.26
3	CBJ	5	0	0.28

Shots are modeled attempts: shots on goal, goals, and missed shots. Blocked shots are excluded. High danger is xG >= 0.20.

🎯 Shot Chart

📈 Post-Game Analysis

Prediction Result

✅ Correct

Confidence: 65.4%

Total Goals

Actual: 3.0

Expected: 6.3

Score Breakdown