Minnesota’s elite scoring and No. 3 power-index ranking test a Montréal team that has won four of its last five.
Tuesday’s Centre Bell matchup puts two strong starts on the line: Montréal is 11-3-3 with 25 points, while Minnesota sits 12-3-4 with 28. The Canadiens have won four of their past five and carry a two-game streak; the Wild are 3-2 over their last five and coming off a loss, with Minnesota ranked No. 3 in the power index to Montréal’s No. 10. Kirill Kaprizov has 28 points in 16 games and Quinn Hughes 22, giving Minnesota a major test for a Canadiens attack led by Cole Caufield’s 14 points in 14 games. Goaltending could tilt it: Jacob Fowler has a .925 save percentage across 14 games, while Jesper Wallstedt is at .919 in 16, and Montréal must contain Minnesota’s top scorers to turn its recent form into a standings-gap-closing win.