This is a 10* on MINNESOTA

In the final days of the NHL regular season, all the drama seems to rest with who is going to win the West Division (and the President’s Trophy). That race is a two-team one, between Vegas and Colorado. But Minnesota still lurks in the shadows and can steal home ice advantage away from the Avs for the first round of the playoffs. That’s if the Wild can win the final two games and the Avs fail to pick up a point from their final two. An unlikely scenario, but expect Minnesota to play well tonight when their hopes for home ice advantage are still alive. St. Louis, on the other hand, has nothing to play for in these last two regular season games. They are locked into fourth place in the West and will face whoever wins the division – Vegas or Colorado. The Wild’s last seven games have all been decided by one goal, with four going to overtime, but they are 4-0-1 the last five. St. Louis has dropped three of four, it’s only win coming Monday in OT against the non-contending Kings. Minnesota is 4-0 its last four times as a road favorite. Play on MINNESOTA

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This is a 10* on ATLANTA

The Hawks beat the Wizards Monday, 125-124, but did not cover the number (-8). It was an interesting game in that the Wizards led 62-61 at halftime, but then Atlanta came storming out of the break to take a 17 point lead after three quarters. But the fourth belonged to Washington as they outscored the Hawks 45-29. Still, Atlanta won despite shooting only 33.3 percent from three (compared to 50% for Washington). The number is a little bit shorter for tonight’s rematch and we will lay the points in this one as Washington isn’t liable to shoot the ball as well as they did Monday. Bradley Beal, who is the NBA’s second leading scorer, has again been ruled out. That the Wizards scored 124 without him on Monday was a surprise. Atlanta has won four of five and is trying to lock down home court advantage for the first round of the playoffs. They are 22-11 SU at home this season, so home court advantage is important to them. Monday was their eighth straight win here. They are 14-2 ATS L16 as a home favorite. Play on ATLANTA

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This is a 10* on OVER

The Phillies routed the Nationals last night, 6-2, to stay within a game of first place in the NL East. Washington is last in the division with a 13-18 record. The Nats have played fewer games than everyone besides the Mets but a key issue for them has been scoring runs. They are 27th in MLB at 3.6 runs/game and that was actually going into yesterday, so the number is even smaller now. But even though seven of the last eight games have seen them held to three runs or less, the Nats may surprise at the plate tonight as they are set to face Zack Wheeler, whom they’ve had success against in the past. Wheeler is 6-11 all-time vs. Washington with a 4.64 ERA in 20 starts. Wheeler did throw a complete game shutout his last start, but has struggled to find consistency in 2021 as he’s yet to have consecutive quality starts. The Phillies have scored six runs or more in three of the past four games, so we think they can be counted on to score even though they’ve struggled some in the past against Jon Lester. This isn’t the “same old Lester,” however. This will be just his third start of the year after dealing with COVID-19. He’s yet to make it past the fifth. The Over is 4-0 in the Phillies last four games vs. a LH starter and 6-1 the last seven times they’ve been off a win.  Play on OVER

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This is an 8* on UNDER

The Mets drew first blood with the Orioles, winning the series opener 3-2 on Tuesday. All five runs were scored in the final three innings. The Mets are giving up just 2.1 runs per game at home, so Baltimore struggling to score last night should not have been a major surprise. Especially with them playing without the DH. It’s not like they are a great offensive team even with the designated hitter in the lineup. They came into Tuesday averaging just 3.9 runs/game. Look for the Orioles to struggle again this afternoon as they face Taijuan Walker, who has been great so far for the Mets with a 5-1 TSR. The team is 3-0 his last three starts with Walker posting a 1.80 ERA and 0.75 WHIP. Walker allowed just one hit in seven innings the last time he started, which was at St. Louis. His last home start saw him toss seven shutout innings of three-hit ball. The Mets’ old teammate Matt Harvey will start for Baltimore today. While we don’t expect he and the Orioles to win today, Harvey may make it tough on the home team. He has a 1.72 ERA his last three starts and Baltimore pitching has kept opposing hitters to a .208 average on the road (entering yesterday). Play on UNDER

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This is a 7* on NY METS

The Mets drew first blood with the Orioles, winning the series opener 3-2 on Tuesday. While it’s true the Mets had a slight advantage as Monday was an off-day for them (while Baltimore was hosting Boston), let’s be honest here: the Mets are just plain better. Now 17-13 overall and 10-4 at home, they lead the NL East. Baltimore is 16-20 overall and last in the AL East, which is where you are likely to find them the remainder of the 2021 season. The Orioles’ 11-7 road record is certainly surprising, but also won’t be maintained. The Mets are giving up just 2.1 runs per game at home. Wednesday’s starter Taijuan Walker has been great so far with a 5-1 TSR and the team is 3-0 his last three with Walker posting a 1.80 ERA and 0.75 WHIP. Walker allowed just one hit in seven innings the last time he started, which was at St. Louis. His last home start saw him toss seven shutout innings of three-hit ball. The Mets’ old teammate Matt Harvey will start for Baltimore today. He has a 4.11 and 1.43 WHIP on the road, so it seems a little lucky that the Orioles are 3-0 in those three starts. The Orioles don’t score all that much to begin with (3.9 runs/game) and don’t get to use the designated hitter in this series. Play on NY METS

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