BOSTON vs ST LOUIS
When: 6/3/2019 8:00 PM
Where:

TV: 8 p.m. ET, NBC, CBC, Sportsnet, TVA
LINE: 0
PREDICTION: Bruins 3, Blues 2

Oddsmakers currently have the BOSTON listed as 100-moneyline favorites versus the ST LOUIS, while the game’s total is sitting at 5.5.

The St. Louis Blues waited 49 years between hosting games in the Stanley Cup Final, and another such contest after Monday’s Game 4 might not be in the cards if they don’t take a more disciplined approach against the Boston Bruins. The Bruins scored four power-play goals on as many shots to breeze to a 7-2 victory on Saturday and take a 2-1 edge in the series.

Boston has scored with the man advantage in each of its past seven games to match a franchise postseason record, while its 23 power-play goals are one shy of the club mark for one playoff season (1991). Defenseman Torey Krug made St. Louis pay for its infractions in Game 3, collecting the primary assist on three of the goals with the man advantage and scoring on the other one for a franchise-best four points in the Finals. The power play surge contributed to five goals being allowed on 19 shots for Calder Trophy finalist Jordan Binnington, who was pulled for the first time in 52 starts this season. “You prepare the same way,” the 25-year-old Binnington told reporters of his mindset for Game 4. “Believe in your teammates and believe in yourself. Got to do your job. You just have to handle adversity. It’s not going to be perfect. These things will happen. You regroup and move on.”

ABOUT THE BRUINS: The members of the “Perfection Line” contributed to Boston’s potent power play, with Patrice Bergeron scoring a goal and setting up two others to lower the volume on audible speculation that he is playing through an injury. “Watch the game tonight. Does he look hurt?” linemate Brad Marchand told reporters of the four-time Selke Trophy recipient, whose NHL-best seven power-play goals are two shy of the league playoff record (Mike Bossy, Cam Neely). Marchand notched his ninth power-play assist on Krug’s goal and David Pastrnak scored with the man advantage just 41 seconds into the second period for his eighth tally of the playoffs.

ABOUT THE BLUES: St. Louis coach Craig Berube is at a loss as to why his club has been whistled for penalties as much as it has in the first three games of Stanley Cup Final. “First of all, we were the least penalized team in the league in the first three rounds; now all of a sudden we’ve taken 14 penalties in one series,” Berube told the media on Sunday. “So I don’t know. I don’t buy into all of that, to be honest with you.” While the Bruins’ power play is a staggering 6-for-14 in the series, the Blues have converted just one of their 10 opportunities with the man advantage.

OVERTIME

1. St. Louis F Ivan Barbashev has collected four points (three goals, one assist) in his last seven games.

2. Boston G Tuukka Rask has turned aside 164 of 168 shots to win his last five road starts.

3. The Blues were 1-2 in Game 4 of their first three postseason series.

PREDICTION: Bruins 3, Blues 2

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BOSTON vs CAROLINA
When: 5/14/2019 8:00 PM
Where: PNC Arena

TV: 8 p.m. ET, NBC Sports Network, CBC, Sportsnet, TVAS
LINE: -115
PREDICTION: Bruins 3, Hurricanes 2

Oddsmakers currently have the BOSTON listed as -115-moneyline favorites versus the CAROLINA, while the game’s total is sitting at 5.5.

The Carolina Hurricanes have been perfect at home through the first two rounds of the playoffs and they will need to keep that streak intact if they hope to get back into the Easten Conference finals. After getting blown out in back-to-back losses in Boston, the Hurricanes face a must-win situation when they host the Bruins in Game 3 on Tuesday night.

Although Carolina overcame a 2-0 series deficit against reigning Stanley Cup champion Washington in the opening round, the team needs to make a statement that it can play with Boston. “Playoffs are all about putting pressure on the other team and seeing how they do with a little bit of pressure,” captain Justin Williams said. “So we need to get a win … and then push back a little bit and see how they respond. Just squeeze the other team a little bit. They’ve squeezed us twice. We need to do a little bit of punching back.” The Bruins came from behind to win each of their first two series but they have outscored the Hurricanes 11-4 in extending their postseason winning streak to five games. “It’s 2-0, that’s good,” goaltender Tuukka Rask said after his team scored the first six goals in Sunday’s 6-2 drubbing. “We took care of business at home, which is what we wanted to do.”

ABOUT THE BRUINS: Perhaps the best sign for Boston in the Game 2 mauling was that its vaunted No. 1 unit contributed only two assists while the third line of Charlie Coyle, Marcus Johansson and Dalton Heinen combined for seven points to boost their totals to 11 goals and 17 assists in the playoffs. “Depth scoring is so crucial for playoffs,” defenseman Torey Krug said. “I said it all along that if we were going to make it and go on a run, it was going to be those bottom two lines that feed energy into this team and score big timely goals and we’re going to need that going forward.” Krug and his fellow blue-liners did their part Sunday by supplying three goals and three assists.

ABOUT THE HURRICANES: Petr Mrazek was hurt in Game 2 of the second round against the New York Islanders and did not return until the series opener against Boston, but he said the injury and subsequent layoff were not factors in giving up 10 goals in the first two games. “I’m feeling good, no issue with that,” Mrazek said. “I don’t think it was that long a break, maybe nine or 10 days. I was feeling pretty good. I’m not going to look past, just look forward to the next one.” Coach Rod Brind’Amour acknowledged that he is contemplating a change in net for Game 3, which would mean a switch to Curtis McElhinney, who earned three wins by turning aside 71 of 75 shots in 7 1/2 periods against New York.

OVERTIME

1. Krug became the fifth Boston defenseman to register three assists in multiple games in the postseason.

2. Hurricanes F Teuvo Teravainen has scored four times in four games to lift his team-high total to seven goals.

3. Boston is 4-for-9 on the power play versus Carolina and has had 19 different players score in the playoffs, matching a franchise record.

PREDICTION: Bruins 3, Hurricanes 2

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ST LOUIS vs SAN JOSE
When: 5/13/2019 9:00 PM
Where: SAP Center at San Jose

TV: 9 p.m. ET, NBC Sports Network, CBC, Sportsnet, TVA
LINE:
PREDICTION: Blues 3, Sharks 2

Oddsmakers currently have the ST LOUIS listed as + 115 moneyline favorites versus the SAN JOSE, while the game’s total is sitting at 5.5.

Logan Couture routinely shines under the bright lights of the postseason, but the 30-year-old wasn’t alone as the San Jose Sharks won the series opener of their Western Conference final against the St. Louis Blues. Couture and linemates Timo Meier and Gustav Nyquist aim to ride the momentum of their eight-point performance into Game 2 of the series in San Jose on Monday night.

“(Meier) was a bull. When he skates and (with) his strength, he’s tough to defend. We’re fortunate enough to play with him on our line,” said Couture, who joined Meier with two goals and an assist in Saturday’s 6-3 win over St. Louis. Couture leads the NHL in goals (11) and points (17) in the playoffs, three tallies behind captain Joe Pavelski’s franchise record set in 2016 while his point total is a fair distance behind the 30 he recorded in that playoff year. The Sharks improved to 7-2 at home during this postseason after taking advantage of 12 giveaways to hand the Blues their second loss in the last seven road contests. “It wasn’t our best game. We didn’t take care of the puck well enough,” said Ryan O’Reilly, who snapped an eight-game goal drought by scoring in the second period of the opener.

ABOUT THE BLUES: Jordan Binnington is a finalist for the Calder Memorial Trophy on the strength of a sterling 24-5-1 run in the regular season, and the 25-year-old was not to blame in the eyes of his teammates despite surrendering five goals on 24 shots in the series opener. “He was great,” fellow rookie Robert Thomas told reporters. “He made a bunch of great saves. We hung him out to dry.” Jaden Schwartz set up defenseman Joel Edmundson’s first-period goal to boost his point total to 12 in the playoffs after mustering just 36 in the regular season.

ABOUT THE SHARKS: Couture’s 45 playoff goals trail only Washington captain Alex Ovechkin (50) for the most since 2010, while his double-digit goal totals in multiple postseasons made him the sixth active player with that distinction (Ovechkin, Jake Guentzel, Evgeni Malkin, Patrick Kane, Nikita Kucherov). Couture resides two playoff points shy of 100, while Pavelski is one short of triple digits. Brent Burns (15) and Erik Karlsson (13) have combined for 28 points through the first 15 playoff games, the most for a defensive tandem since fellow former Norris Trophy recipients Paul Coffey (17) and Nicklas Lidstrom (15) accomplished the feat with Detroit in 1995.

OVERTIME

1. St. Louis RW Vladimir Tarasenko’s minus-3 rating in the series opener dropped him to minus-8, tied with Tampa Bay C Steven Stamkos for the worst in the playoffs.

2. San Jose is one home win shy of matching its franchise record for most in a postseason (2016).

3. Blues F Brayden Schenn has been held off the scoresheet in seven straight games and 11 of 14 in the playoffs.

PREDICTION: Blues 3, Sharks 2

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CAROLINA vs BOSTON
When: 5/12/2019 3:00 PM
Where:

TV: 3 p.m. ET, NBC, CBC, Sportsnet, TVA
LINE: 0
PREDICTION: Bruins 3, Hurricanes 2

Oddsmakers currently have the CAROLINA listed as 130-moneyline favorites versus the BOSTON, while the game’s total is sitting at 5.5.

The Boston Bruins were 20 minutes away from losing home-ice advantage in the opener of their Eastern Conference final until an offensive eruption early in the third period enabled them to seize the upper hand in the series. Boston will attempt to hold serve again at home and grab a 2-0 edge in the best-of-7 set against the Carolina Hurricanes on Sunday afternoon.

The Bruins won the opener by a deceptive 5-2 margin, erasing a one-goal deficit in the third by scoring a pair of power-play goals in a 28-second span to tilt the momentum in their favor against seventh-seeded Carolina. “We were fortunate to only be down one goal, and then when you get those chances on the power play, you’ve got to make them pay,” goaltender Tuukka Rask told reporters after winning his fourth consecutive start in the postseason. The Hurricanes showed their mettle in rallying from a 2-0 series deficit to oust defending Stanley Cup champion Washington in the first round before sweeping the New York Islanders, so they are not putting too much stock in the Game 1 defeat. “It’s good that we have been in this situation before. We were down in Washington, so it is all good,” forward Sebastian Aho told reporters after Thursday’s setback.

ABOUT THE BRUINS: Charlie Coyle, a trade deadline acquisition, has made quite a splash with Boston, tying for the team lead with his sixth playoff goal after scoring into an empty net in the series opener. Fellow forward Marcus Johansson, imported from New Jersey for the postseason run, is also making an impact after overcoming a pair of injuries, igniting the comeback by netting the tying goal on Thursday after converting in the series-clinching win over Columbus. “It’s why we’re still playing,” Boston coach Bruce Cassidy told reporters of the duo’s contributions. “If we don’t get secondary scoring, we’re probably not having this discussion right now.”

ABOUT THE HURRICANES: Petr Mrazek was victimized for three of the four goals in the third period but coach Rod Brind’Amour did not second-guess his decision to start the 27-year-old Czech for the first time since he was injured in Game 2 against the Islanders. “Petr was fine. We left him out to dry there at the end,” Brind’Amour said of Mrazek, who already has posted a pair of shutouts in the postseason. Aho, Carolina’s leading scorer in the regular season, has come alive after a slow start in the playoffs, scoring for the third consecutive game Thursday to boost his season totals against the Bruins to five goals and three assists in four matchups.

OVERTIME

1. Bruins D Charlie McAvoy will rejoin the lineup after sitting out the opener while serving a one-game suspension.

2. Hurricanes fourth-line C Greg McKegg has scored in back-to-back contests following a 23-game goal drought.

3. Bruins LW Brad Marchand collected two assists Thursday to give him a team-high 15 points in the playoffs.

PREDICTION: Bruins 3, Hurricanes 2

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TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS vs CAROLINA HURRICANES
When: 7:00 PM  ET, Tuesday, December 11, 2018
Where: PNC Arena, Raleigh, North Carolina

TV: 7:00 PM
LINE: 0
PREDICTION: CAROLINA , TORONTO

Oddsmakers currently have the TORONTO listed as -135-moneyline favorites versus the CAROLINA, while the game’s total is sitting at 6.

The Carolina Hurricanes are expected to see the return of leading goal-scorer Micheal Ferland on Tuesday when the team hosts the high-flying Toronto Maple Leafs. Ferland, who has been sidelined four games with a concussion, scored on the power play in what proved to be the winning tally in Carolina’s 5-2 victory versus Toronto on Nov. 21.

The Hurricanes scored only five goals during a 1-3-1 stretch before locating their offense Friday in a 4-1 triumph at Anaheim to conclude a three-game road trip. “We’re not going to score a lot of pretty goals. We’ve pretty much established that,” Carolina coach Rod Brind’Amour said. “We need to find other ways to get them. Obviously, getting to the net is paramount.” Toronto’s second-ranked offense has little issue scoring goals this season, however the Maple Leafs have been rather generous of late after surrendering 11 in the back-to-back losses that followed a five-game winning streak. “We haven’t been good enough. That’s a message sent. It should be received and now let’s do something about it,” Babcock said Monday, via TSN.

TV: 7 p.m. ET, TSN4 (Toronto), FS Carolinas

ABOUT THE MAPLE LEAFS (20-9-1): Connor Brown will assume Zach Hyman’s spot on the line with John Tavares (team-leading 18 goals) and Mitch Marner (club-best 34 assists, 40 points) with Hyman serving the first contest of a two-game suspension for his actions against defenseman Charlie McAvoy in Saturday’s 6-3 setback to Boston. “I think he is going well (despite his stats),” Babcock said of the 24-year-old Brown, via TSN. “His job is to be real solid defensively and penalty kill for us and I actually think he’s been good.” Tavares, who is slated to play his 700th NHL game Tuesday, scored in the first encounter with Carolina.

ABOUT THE HURRICANES (13-11-4): Scott Darling was summoned from Charlotte of the American Hockey League with fellow goaltender and former Maple Leaf Curtis McElhinney nursing a lower-body injury. The 29-year-old Darling has struggled to find his place with the Hurricanes since being acquired from Chicago, posting a 15-25-8 mark with a 3.17 goals-against average – including a 2-4-1 record this season. Captain Justin Williams and Sebastian Aho (team-leading 19 assists, 27 points) each scored versus the Ducks and also tallied in the first meeting with the Maple Leafs.

OVERTIME

1. Toronto C Auston Matthews has collected six goals and four assists during his five-game point streak since returning from a shoulder injury.

2. The Hurricanes have recorded at least a point in five of seven encounters (4-2-1) versus Atlantic Division adversaries.

3. Toronto D Morgan Rielly has notched an assist in each of the past five contests.

PREDICTION: Maple Leafs 5, Hurricanes 1

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VANCOUVER CANUCKS vs COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS
When: 7:00 PM  ET, Tuesday, December 11, 2018
Where: Nationwide Arena, Columbus, Ohio

TV: 7:00 PM
LINE: 0
PREDICTION: COLUMBUS , VANCOUVER

Oddsmakers currently have the VANCOUVER listed as 180-moneyline favorites versus the COLUMBUS, while the game’s total is sitting at 6.

Elias Pettersson provided another highlight in his amazing rookie season last time out and the 20-year-old center looks to continue his latest scoring surge when the Vancouver Canucks visit the Columbus Blue Jackets on Tuesday night. Pettersson became the sixth rookie in NHL history to record two five-point games in a season as he scored once and set up four others in Vancouver’s 6-1 victory at St. Louis on Sunday.

“I don’t really know what to answer,” Pettersson told reporters when asked about posting 30 points in his first 26 NHL games – eight in the past three. “I’m just trying to create chances and points will come when you play good. That’s all I’m thinking of.” Pettersson’s performance, which earned him NHL First Star of the Week on Monday, and Brock Boeser’s hat trick Sunday gave the Canucks two straight wins after a 1-10-2 stretch and they will test themselves against the Blue Jackets, who sit second in the Metropolitan despite losing three of their last four contests. Columbus lost 9-6 last Tuesday against Calgary before falling 4-0 to Washington on Saturday in its last two home games, and plays the next five at Nationwide Arena. “I don’t see us doing the things necessary to win hockey games at crucial times. …,” Blue Jackets captain Nick Foligno told reporters after Saturday’s setback. “. … We were flat in the first (period) and kind of got caught watching, and that’s unacceptable.”

TV: 7 p.m. ET, Sportsnet Pacific (Vancouver), FS Ohio (Columbus)

ABOUT THE CANUCKS (13-16-3): Boeser owns seven goals in his last seven games, sandwiched around a stint on injured reserve, and owns nine on the season to tie for third on the team. “It was nice,” Boeser told reporters after his second career hat trick Sunday. “Obviously, I’ve been battling through some injuries. I feel like I’ve been getting chances lately and our line has been playing solid hockey. It’s nice to get a few lucky bounces.” Boeser has been playing with Pettersson and newly-acquired Josh Leivo of late while Bo Horvat (28 points) centers another top line and boasts six points in his last five games.

ABOUT THE BLUE JACKETS (16-11-2): Right wing Cam Atkinson saw his 12-game point streak come to an end Saturday after scoring 13 times and setting up seven others during the run. Atkinson shares the team lead at 31 points with left wing Artemi Panarin, who recorded four of his team-best 24 assists in the past three contests, while center Pierre-Luc Dubois (25 points) has been kept off the scoresheet in three straight games. Defenseman Seth Jones is rounding into form after an early-season knee injury, registering seven points in his last six games to pull within two of 200 in his career.

OVERTIME

1. Columbus G Sergei Bobrovsky allowed 17 goals in his last four games and is 3-5-2 all-time against Vancouver.

2. Leivo has a goal, a plus-5 rating and eight shots on net in his first three games since coming over in a trade from Toronto.

3. The Canucks have earned at least a point in six straight meetings with the Blue Jackets (4-0-2).

PREDICTION: Blue Jackets 4, Canucks 3

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LOS ANGELES KINGS vs BUFFALO SABRES
When: 7:00 PM  ET, Tuesday, December 11, 2018
Where: KeyBank Center, Buffalo, New York

TV: 7:00 PM
LINE:
PREDICTION: BUFFALO , LOS ANGELES

Oddsmakers currently have the LOS ANGELES listed as -1.5 moneyline favorites versus the BUFFALO, while the game’s total is sitting at 5.5.

Despite Jack Eichel’s recent offensive surge, the Buffalo Sabres have gone without a victory since having their 10-game winning streak halted late in November. The Sabres attempt to end their five-game slide (0-3-2) when they continue a four-game homestand Tuesday against the Los Angeles Kings.

Eichel has been a bright spot during Buffalo’s winless streak, recording four two-point performances – including two-goal efforts in each of the first two contests of the team’s stretch at KeyBank Center. The 22-year-old captain, who had gone seven games without a goal and notched just one in 16 contests before the outburst, is one away from joining Jeff Skinner as the only Sabres in double digits. Los Angeles’ four-game road trip got off to a rough start as it dropped a 3-1 decision in Detroit for its fifth defeat in seven overall contests. Captain Anze Kopitar scored late in the third period to avoid a shutout for the Kings, who have recorded a total of four goals during their three-game skid away from home.

TV: 7 p.m. ET, Sportsnet One, Sportsnet East, Sportsnet Ontario, FS West (Los Angeles), MSG (Buffalo)

ABOUT THE KINGS (11-19-1): Kopitar’s goal against the Red Wings was his eighth of the season, tying him with Dustin Brown for the team lead and ending his seven-game drought. The 31-year-old Slovenian, who netted a career-high 35 tallies last season, needs two to reach 300 for his career. Brown has collected five goals and four assists over his last nine contests after helping set up Kopitar’s tally on Monday.

ABOUT THE SABRES (17-9-4): Buffalo hopes to start receiving scoring from other sources as the top line of Sam Reinhart (five), Eichel (four) and Skinner has recorded 10 of the team’s 12 goals over the last five games. Reinhart’s eruption has been a welcome one, however, as the 23-year-old – who had scored only three times in his first 25 contests this season – has collected five tallies and four assists during his career-high six-game point streak. The Sabres could use some help from their power play as well, as it has gone just 1-for-14 over the last six contests.

OVERTIME

1. Skinner has notched 30 points in as many games and is 19 away from matching his total over 82 contests with Carolina last season.

2. Los Angeles recalled D Sean Walker from Ontario of the American Hockey League prior to Monday’s game, but the 24-year-old was a healthy scratch.

3. Buffalo G Carter Hutton (upper body) has been on the ice two straight days and is expected to return to action this week.

PREDICTION: Sabres 3, Kings 2

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ARIZONA COYOTES vs BOSTON BRUINS
When: 7:00 PM  ET, Tuesday, December 11, 2018
Where: TD Garden, Boston, Massachusetts

TV: 7:00 PM
LINE: 0
PREDICTION: BOSTON , ARIZONA

Oddsmakers currently have the ARIZONA listed as 155-moneyline favorites versus the BOSTON, while the game’s total is sitting at 5.5.

The Boston Bruins rebounded from a rough stretch by earning wins on back-to-back nights over the weekend and look to build on that Tuesday when they try to extend their winning streak against the visiting Arizona Coyotes to 14 games. The Bruins had dropped three straight and four of five before knocking off Toronto 6-3 on Saturday and rallying for a 2-1 overtime win at Ottawa on Sunday.

“(Sunday) was a game we stayed patient and eventually got things to go our way,” Boston coach Bruce Cassidy told reporters. “I thought we were the better team the last 40, 43 minutes. … and eventually we got rewarded.” The Bruins have limited the Coyotes to six total goals over the last six meetings in the series, including a 6-1 triumph at Boston last season, and hope to take advantage of an Arizona team which has been ravaged by injuries to their goaltending corps. No. 1 goalie Antti Raanta (lower body) could be lost for the season and No. 2 Darcy Kuemper (lower body) may return soon after missing almost three weeks, but the Coyotes won four in a row without either before dropping the last two games – including a 5-3 setback against San Jose on Saturday. “I thought we did a great job of getting back in it,” Arizona forward Brad Richardson told reporters after rallying from a 3-0 deficit Saturday. “We stayed composed, we didn’t really change our game, we just kept going.”

TV: 7 p.m. ET, FS Arizona Plus, NESN (Boston)

ABOUT THE COYOTES (13-13-2): Adin Hill has started each of the last five games in net (3-2-0) and owns a .939 save percentage overall since being summoned from the American Hockey League when Kuemper went down. Center Nick Schmaltz has made quite an impression since being acquired from Chicago late last month, posting three goals – including one in Saturday’s loss – and three assists in six games with the club. Forward Clayton Keller boasts six of his team-leading 20 points in the last five games and shares the team goal-scoring lead with Richardson (eight).

ABOUT THE BRUINS (16-10-4): David Krejci, who is scheduled to play his 800th game in the NHL on Tuesday, took over the No. 1 center role with Patrice Bergeron on injured reserve and has picked it up lately with four points in three contests. David Pastrnak has five of his team-best 35 points in the past five games while playing with Krejci and Brad Marchand, who has a goal and four assists in the past two contests. Defenseman Torey Krug had the game-winner, set by by Krejci, on Sunday and owns five points in the past two games.

OVERTIME

1. The Coyotes lead the league in penalty killing (90.2 percent) after going 8-for-8 in the last five games.

2. Boston LW Jake DeBrusk (12 points) missed the last two games with an upper-body injury and is questionable for Tuesday.

3. Arizona D Niklas Hjalmarsson is slated to play his 700th NHL game Tuesday – 623 with the Chicago Blackhawks.

PREDICTION: Bruins 4, Coyotes 2

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DETROIT RED WINGS vs WASHINGTON CAPITALS
When: 7:30 PM  ET, Tuesday, December 11, 2018
Where: Capital One Arena, Washington, District of Columbia

TV: 7:30 PM
LINE: 0
PREDICTION: WASHINGTON , DETROIT

Oddsmakers currently have the DETROIT listed as 215-moneyline favorites versus the WASHINGTON, while the game’s total is sitting at 6.

Alex Ovechkin has won the Maurice Richard Trophy seven times during his stellar career, including five of the last six seasons, and is on a path toward another. The 33-year-old captain looks to extend a pair of streaks on Tuesday as the Washington Capitals seek a third straight victory when they host the Detroit Red Wings.

Ovechkin, who is the reigning Richard Trophy winner after coming within one tally of his fourth 50-goal effort in five seasons, began Monday as the league leader with 22 as he has scored in three consecutive contests and seven of his last eight. The three-time Hart Trophy recipient also is riding an 11-game point streak (10 goals, six assists) and has yet to go back-to-back games this campaign without landing on the scoresheet. Detroit is coming off just its second win in seven home contests, a 3-1 triumph over Los Angeles on Monday in which Dylan Larkin scored his team-leading 12th goal. The 22-year-old has collected two tallies and five assists during his four-game point streak for the Red Wings, who are seeking their third straight road victory.

TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, NBC Sports Network, NCBS Washington

ABOUT THE RED WINGS (14-13-4): Trevor Daley returned to the lineup against the Kings and blocked two shots while posting a plus-2 rating in 19 minutes, 43 seconds of ice time. The 35-year-old defenseman, who is one point away from 300 for his career, had missed the previous five contests with a lower-body injury. Larkin has landed on the scoresheet in seven of his last nine games, collecting four goals and six assists in that span.

ABOUT THE CAPITALS (17-9-3): Washington could be even stronger for Tuesday’s contest as T.J. Oshie was a full participant in Monday’s practice and may be ready to return to the lineup. The 31-year-old, who is four goals shy of 200 for his career, has missed the last 11 games with a concussion. Like Ovechkin, Evgeny Kuznetsov has yet to be held without a point in back-to-back contests this season as he brings a five-game streak (one goal, five assists) into Tuesday’s matchup.

OVERTIME

1. Capitals RW Tom Wilson, who has recorded 14 points in 11 games this season, missed the last two contests with a concussion.

2. With the return of Daley, Detroit assigned D Brian Lashoff to Grand Rapids of the American Hockey League.

3. Washington has scored at least four goals in eight of its last 10 contests.

PREDICTION: Capitals 5, Red Wings 1

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FLORIDA PANTHERS vs ST LOUIS BLUES
When: 8:00 PM  ET, Tuesday, December 11, 2018
Where: Enterprise Center, St. Louis, Missouri

TV: 8:00 PM
LINE: 0
PREDICTION: ST LOUIS , FLORIDA

Oddsmakers currently have the FLORIDA listed as -105-moneyline favorites versus the ST LOUIS, while the game’s total is sitting at 6.

The Florida Panthers had mixed results during their giant eight-game homestand and will head out on the road for six of the next seven, beginning with a stop in St. Louis to meet the struggling Blues on Tuesday night. The Panthers earned nine of a possible 16 points on the homestand (3-2-3) after dropping a 5-4 shootout decision against the New York Rangers on Saturday.

“I think we gave away some points,” Florida coach Bob Boughner told reporters after seeing his team suffer four one-goal losses – three after regulation – during the home stretch. “It could’ve easily been 12, 13 or 14 (points).” The Panthers have some ground to make up in the Atlantic Division with games in hand after the slow start, but St. Louis has dug itself a big hole and is close to sinking to the bottom of the league after a 6-1 loss to Vancouver at home Sunday. The Blues were coming off a promising 1-0 victory at Winnipeg on Friday, but have not won back-to-back contests in just over a month and veteran forward Alex Steen told reporters the team is not committed enough to accomplish its goals. “The way out is the same thing we preach day in and day out,” St. Louis interim coach Craig Berube told the media. “You have to go into every game, no matter who you play, and you gotta be committed to giving 100 percent effort and compete as hard as you can, every game. … We’re going to keep at it, we’re going to keep pounding it in their heads until they get it.”

TV: 8 p.m. ET, FS Florida, FS Midwest (St. Louis)

ABOUT THE PANTHERS (11-11-6): Florida averaged 3.5 goals per game on the homestand and boast five players with at least 27 points on this season, but the next most among the healthy players is 13 from defensemen Aaron Ekblad and Mike Matheson. “It’s a good group of guys,” Boughner told reporters. “The only problem I have is that it’s the same four or five guys scoring every night. We need some depth.” Jonathan Huberdeau has eight multi-point efforts in his last 10 games and leads the team with 34 while Mike Hoffman tops the Panthers with 14 goals.

ABOUT THE BLUES (10-14-4): Rookie forward Jordan Kyrou scored his first NHL goal Sunday in his 11th game, logging 13 minutes, 59 seconds of ice time – his second highest total this season with St. Louis. Center Ryan O’Reilly leads the team with 29 points, but managed just two assists in the past five contests, while Vladimir Tarasenko (nine goals, 11 assists) has been kept off the scoresheet in four straight games. Jordan Binnington got recalled after Sunday’s game and fellow goalie Chad Johnson (2-6-0, .884 save percentage) was placed on waivers Monday.

OVERTIME

1. The Panthers have at least one power-play goal in 18 of the last 19 games and the Blues are 13-of-13 on the penalty kill in the past three contests.

2. Florida F Nick Bjugstad (10 points) missed Saturday’s game and is questionable to face St. Louis with an upper-body injury.

3. St. Louis F Jaden Schwartz (upper body), who has missed the last 11 games, could return to the lineup Tuesday.

PREDICTION: Blues 4, Panthers 3

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