A pair of teams that’ve positioned themselves firmly in the playoff picture, the Minnesota Wild and the St. Louis Blues collide at the Scottrade Center in a Central Division matchup. The opening face-off is at 8 p.m. ET on Saturday, November 25, and fans at home will be able to watch it live on Fox Sports North.
Minnesota Wild vs. St. Louis Blues Odds
St. Louis is 16-6 straight up (SU) and has earned 9.1 units for moneyline bettors this season. That win percentage, ranked second in the NHL so far in the early season, is a solid improvement compared to how the team performed during last year’s regular season (46-36). Through 22 regular season contests, 12 of the teams games have gone over the total, while 10 have gone under and none have pushed. This season, the teams 8-2 SU at home.
The Blues have converted on just 16.7 percent of their power play opportunities this season, a mark that places them in the bottom-10 overall among NHL teams. On the other hand, their penalty kill is ranked 22nd overall, and they’ve successfully killed off 78.3 percent of all penalties.
The Blues, as a collective unit, have been penalized just 3.7 times per game overall this season, and 2.8 per game over their last five home outings. The team has been forced to kill penalties for just 8.0 minutes per game over their last 10 matchups, overall.
Averaging 26.6 saves per game with a .909 save percentage, Jake Allen (12-6-1) has been the top goalkeeper for St. Louis this year. If head coach Mike Yeo decides to give him a rest, however, the team could turn to Carter Hutton (4-1-1 record, .943 save percentage, 1.71 goals against average).
The Blue Notes will continue relying on offensive production out of Jaden Schwartz and Brayden Schenn. Schwartz (30 points) has tallied 11 goals and 19 assists and has recorded two or more points eight times this year. Schenn has 10 goals and 20 assists to his credit and has notched at least one point in 16 games.
On the other side of the ice, Minnesota is 11-11 straight up (SU) and has lost 3.8 units for moneyline bettors this year. A total of 11 of its outings have gone over the total, while eight have gone under and just two have pushed. The Wild are 5-6 SU as the road team this season.
The Wild have scored on 22.9 percent of their power play chances this year, a figure that’s good enough for seventh-best in the NHL. On the other hand, its penalty kill unit is ranked third overall and it’s successfully killed off 85.5 percent of all penalties.
Minnesota’s skaters have been penalized 3.7 times per game this season, 3.4 per game over their last five contests total, and 3.2 per game over their last five road outings. The teams been forced to kill penalties just 7.1 minutes per game over their last 10 outings.
Devan Dubnyk (.916 save percentage and 2.66 goals against average) has been the primary option in goal for Minnesota. Dubnyk is averaging 28.1 saves per game and owns a 9-8-2 record.
For the visiting Wild, the offense will run through Eric Staal (seven goals, 13 assists) and Jason Zucker (12 goals, six assists).
Minnesota Wild vs. St. Louis Blues Betting Predictions
Predictions: SU Winner – Blues, O/U – Under
Betting Trends
- Over St. Louis last ten outings, eight of them have been decided by two or more goals (the team is 5-3 in those games).
- Power plays and penalty kills may have a critical role in tonight’s matchup. The Wild are 3-4 when they serve fewer penalty minutes than their opponent and 8-7 in games where they’re in the penalty box for fewer than 10 total minutes. The Blues are 6-3 when the team serves fewer penalty minutes than the opposition and 11-4 in games where they’re in the box for less than 10 minutes.
- St. Louis is 2-0 in games decided by a shootout this season while Minnesota is 1-1 in shootouts.
- St. Louis may have an advantage if this one comes down to the wire. The teams 6-2 in games decided by one goal, while Minnesota is 4-6 in such games.
- The total has gone over in four of St. Louis last five outings.
- St. Louis has averaged 3.5 goals per game overall this season, but is scoring 5.3 per matchup over its three-game winning streak.
- St. Louis has averaged 4.4 giveaways over its last five home games, an improvement from its season average of 5.2 giveaways per game (ranked 1st overall).
- Minnesota has averaged 10.4 giveaways over its last five home games, a rise over its season average of 6.4 giveaways per game (ranked third in the NHL).
- The Blue Notes this season have handed the seventh-most hits in the league (23.7 per game).
