ARIZONA vs ST LOUIS
When: 2/2/2021 8:00 PM
Where:

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

Oddsmakers currently have the ARIZONA listed as 150-moneyline favorites versus the ST LOUIS, while the game’s total is sitting at 5.5.

The St. Louis Blues hope to ride the momentum of recent road success when they host the Arizona Coyotes Tuesday.

The Blues defeated the Vegas Golden Knights once and the Anaheim Ducks twice last week before returning home to Enterprise Center.

“It’s a really good road trip by our team,” Blues coach Craig Berube said. “You gotta find ways to win games. In a shortened season like this it’s obviously really important and we did that this trip. We didn’t play real great hockey the whole time, which is hard to do, but you got to find ways to win and we did that.”

The Coyotes have lost four of their last six games, but they are coming off of a 3-2 victory over the Ducks at home on Thursday.

This game will be the start of a three-city, six-game road trip.

“You look at the schedule, you’re playing St. Louis, Minny and Colorado,” Coyotes coach Rick Tocchet said. “But we’re just looking at Tuesday night. That’s the way I look at it.”

The Coyotes will face a hot goaltender in Jordan Binnington, who is 3-0-1 in his last four starts with a .939 save percentage.

The Blues also feature a hot forward line with Brayden Schenn centering between Jordan Kyrou and Jaden Schwartz. Schenn has scored six goals and added four assists during his seven-game scoring streak.

Kyrou has five goals and five assists in nine games after scoring just nine points in 28 games as a rookie last season.

“Jordan Kyrou and Jaden Schwartz are a huge complement to my game,” Schenn said. “Those guys are really fun to play with. They have tons of speed. They work extremely hard. That’s why we have success.”

The Blues could get rugged defenseman Robert Bortuzzo back (upper-body injury) back for this two-game set. Forward Tyler Bozak (upper body) remains questionable.

The Coyotes have benefited from good offensive starts from forward Conor Garland and Christian Dvorak, who each have three goals and four assists. Nick Schmaltz has three goals and three assists.

Defenseman Jakob Chychrun (one goal, five assists) has stepped up his play with defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson (lower-body injury) on the shelf.

Goaltender Darcy Kuemper (2.44 goals-against average, .910 save percentage) has allowed six goals in his last four starts. Antti Raanta, who won his only start this season, has come off injured reserve — so he should see action at some point during this trip.

The Coyotes must face the top three teams in the West Division standings during this 11-day road swing.

“It’s going to be a bunch of hard games,” Garland said. “It starts with St. Louis, obviously, they’re a great team, a hard team to play against. A lot of people think they’re Cup favorites, which they are. We’ve got to go into their building and play them well. Not to look too far ahead, but you understand it’s a condensed schedule.”

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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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ST LOUIS vs PHILADELPHIA
GAME: St. Louis Cardinals (26-26) at Philadelphia Phillies (31-22)
DATE/TIME: Tuesday, May 28 – 7:05 PM EST
WHERE: Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

TV: 7:05 p.m. ET, MLB Network, FS Midwest (St. Louis), NBCS Philadelphia
LINE: -120
PREDICTION: Cardinals 4, Phillies 3

Oddsmakers currently have the PHILADELPHIA listed as -120 point favorites versus the ST LOUIS, while the game’s total is sitting at 10.

The Philadelphia Phillies had won seven of their previous nine games before a sluggish start in the finale of their road trip left a sour taste in their mouths. The National League East-leading Phillies aim to get back on track Tuesday when they host the St. Louis Cardinals in the opener of a three-game series at Citizens Bank Park.

Philadelphia’s offense, which erupted for 22 runs in its previous three games, was limited to just one hit — albeit a solo homer by Andrew Knapp — before dropping a 9-1 setback to Milwaukee on Sunday. Bryce Harper, who has struck out five times during his 0-for-7 stretch, belted a grand slam among his two hits in the Phillies’ 11-1 romp in St. Louis on May 7. The Cardinals lost two of three in that series and did the same in their most recent one, as they squandered a three-run lead in the ninth inning before dropping a 4-3 decision in 10 to Atlanta on Sunday. “This one stings a little more than most,” St. Louis manager Mike Shildt said. “When you get to that point in the game, we’ve just got to be able to figure a way to bring it home.”

PITCHING MATCHUP: Cardinals RH Adam Wainwright (4-4, 4.82 ERA) vs. Phillies RH Nick Pivetta (2-1, 8.35)

Wainwright answered an 0-2 mark in his last three starts by evening his record on Wednesday after allowing three runs on six hits in five innings of a 10-3 win versus Kansas City. The 37-year-old has struggled with his control of late, permitting nine walks in his last two starts (nine innings). Offseason acquisitions Jean Segura (10-for-22, homer) and Harper (9-for-20, homer) have flustered Wainwright, who owns a 7-2 mark with a 2.90 ERA in 15 career encounters (13 starts) against Philadelphia.

Pivetta will return to the starting rotation for the first time since April 16 after being recalled from Triple-A Lehigh Valley. The 26-year-old British Columbia native was rocked for 18 runs and 31 hits — including five homers — in his first four starts of the season with the Phillies before working out the kinks with the IronPigs. Pivetta struck out 50 in 37 innings in Triple-A to show signs of the form he exhibited when he fanned 188 in 33 appearances with Philadelphia last season.

WALK-OFFS

1. St. Louis 1B Paul Goldschmidt went 1-for-11 with four strikeouts in the previous series versus Philadelphia.

2. Segura has hit safely in 15 of 16 games since going 1-for-14 in the previous series with the Cardinals.

3. St. Louis C Yadier Molina is expected to play in the series opener despite bruising his right thumb on Sunday.

PREDICTION: Cardinals 4, Phillies 3

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KANSAS CITY vs ST LOUIS
GAME: Kansas City Royals (16-31) at St. Louis Cardinals (24-23)
DATE/TIME: Wednesday, May 22 – 7:45 PM EST
WHERE: Busch Stadium, St. Louis, Missouri

TV: 7:45 p.m. ET, FS Kansas City, FS Midwest
LINE: -165
PREDICTION: Cardinals 6, Royals 5

Oddsmakers currently have the ST LOUIS listed as -165 point favorites versus the KANSAS CITY, while the game’s total is sitting at 9.

Baseball fans in Missouri will be treated with a double dip between their favorite teams when the Kansas City Royals visit St. Louis for a day-night twinbill with the Cardinals on Wednesday. The threat of severe weather forced the postponement of Tuesday’s scheduled opener and prompted a slight shuffle of the series’ pitching matchup, with Brad Keller of the Royals facing Michael Wacha in the matinee before Homer Bailey and Adam Wainwright meet in the nightcap.

St. Louis is in a four-team battle for National League Central supremacy and fell into fourth place while dropping 13 of their last 17 contests, including two of three in an interleague series at Texas over the weekend. The team’s lack of recent success hasn’t slowed the bat of shortstop Paul DeJong, who drove in three runs in Sunday’s 5-4 loss and went 5-for-12 with a homer and seven RBIs against the Rangers. The Royals totaled seven runs during a four-game slide before breaking out with a 5-1 victory at the Los Angeles Angels on Sunday, but are 1-11 in May when scoring four or fewer runs. Kansas City has lost each of its seven road series.

PITCHING MATCHUP: Royals RH Homer Bailey (4-4, 5.36 ERA) vs. Cardinals RH Adam Wainwright (3-4, 4.75)

Bailey is trying to find some consistency in his first season with Kansas City and followed up a pair of wins with a loss against Texas on Thursday in which he was reached for six runs – five earned – on eight hits and four walks in 4 1/3 innings. The veteran Texan issued 20 walks in 45 1/3 innings over his nine starts. Bailey spent the first 12 seasons of his career in the NL Central with Cincinnati and is 6-15 with a 5.56 ERA in 27 career starts against St. Louis, including two losses last season.

Wainwright followed up a solid game two turns ago with a rocky outing at Atlanta on Thursday, giving up five runs in four innings with a season-high five walks. He limited Pittsburgh to a run in seven frames in his previous start, lowering his ERA at home to 2.45. Chris Owings is 4-for-8 with three doubles against Wainwright, who is 4-2 with a 3.71 ERA in 11 games (eight starts) in his career versus Kansas City.

WALK-OFFS

1. Kansas City optioned RHP Heath Fillmyer to Triple-A Omaha while St. Louis released RHP Luke Gregerson.

2. Royals LHP Jake Diekman owns 15 strikeouts in 7 1/3 innings over his last seven appearances.

3. St. Louis took four of the six meetings last season and eight of 10 over the last two campaigns.

PREDICTION: Cardinals 6, Royals 5

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ST LOUIS vs TEXAS
GAME: St. Louis Cardinals (23-21) at Texas Rangers (19-22)
DATE/TIME: Friday, May 17 – 8:05 PM EST
WHERE: Globe Life Park in Arlington, Arlington, Texas

TV: 8:05 p.m. ET, FS Midwest (St. Louis), FS Southwest (Texas)
LINE:
PREDICTION: Cardinals 8, Rangers 4

Oddsmakers currently have the TEXAS listed as point favorites versus the ST LOUIS, while the game’s total is sitting at .

The Texas Rangers won their last two games by a cumulative 22-2 score and look to continue the onslaught when they open a three-game interleague series against the visiting St. Louis Cardinals on Friday. Texas slugged five homers during a 21-hit assault on Thursday as it rolled to a 16-1 victory in Kansas City.

Joey Gallo and Willie Calhoun each homered during four-hit performances while Danny Santana also recorded four hits during Thursday’s romp. Rougned Odor belted two homers among his three hits and Hunter Pence launched his fifth blast in eight contests. St. Louis is struggling badly with 11 losses in 14 games after being pounded 10-2 in Atlanta on Thursday. Marcell Ozuna is just 5-for-40 over his last 10 games, but his homer on Thursday was his second in three contests.

PITCHING MATCHUP: Cardinals RH Miles Mikolas (4-3, 3.83 ERA) vs. Rangers RH Jose Leclerc (1-1, 6.32)

Mikolas has allowed just three runs and 13 hits in 20 innings over his last three starts. The 30-year-old won the first two outings of the stretch before being a hard-luck loser his last time out, when he gave up two runs and three hits in seven frames against Pittsburgh. Mikolas, who never has faced the Rangers, didn’t fare well at Globe Life Park while pitching for Texas in 2014 as he went 0-4 with a 13.73 ERA in four starts.

The 25-year-old Leclerc, who recently lost the closer’s job, will work the first inning as the “opener” before giving way to Adrian Sampson. The 27-year-old Sampson is 0-3 with a 5.25 ERA and has suffered the loss in each of his last two appearances, giving up 11 runs – 10 earned – and 16 hits over 8 1/3 innings. Sampson has served up seven homers in 36 frames, including three over his last two contests.

WALK-OFFS

1. Rangers LHP Drew Smyly (ankle) had his start pushed back from Friday to Sunday while RHP Shelby Miller, who originally was scheduled to start on Sunday, temporarily will be used in relief.

2. St. Louis plans to activate RHP Carlos Martinez (shoulder), who has yet to make his season debut, on Saturday.

3. Texas INF Logan Forsythe has gone 9-for-16 with five doubles, one triple and five RBIs over his last four games.

PREDICTION: Cardinals 8, Rangers 4

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ST LOUIS vs ATLANTA
GAME: St. Louis Cardinals (23-20) at Atlanta Braves (22-21)
DATE/TIME: Thursday, May 16 – 7:20 PM EST
WHERE: SunTrust Park, Cumberland, Georgia

TV: 7:20 p.m. ET, MLB Network, FS Midwest (St. Louis), FS Southeast (Atlanta)
LINE: -105
PREDICTION: Braves 7, Cardinals 5

Oddsmakers currently have the ATLANTA listed as -105 point favorites versus the ST LOUIS, while the game’s total is sitting at 9.5.

The newest piece of the Atlanta Braves’ constant young wave of talent has arrived in the major leagues, and Austin Riley will look to continue making an impact in Thursday’s series finale at home against the St. Louis Cardinals. One of the top-ranked prospects in the Braves minor-league system homered in his big-league debut Wednesday, helping power Atlanta to its fourth victory in five games with a 4-0 win that evened the three-game series at one game apiece.

Promoted from Triple-A Gwinnett earlier Wednesday after outfielder Ender Inciarte landed on the injured list with a lumbar strain in his back, the 22-year-old Riley finished 1-for-3 with a 438-foot homer leading off the fourth inning, helping 21-year-old Mike Soroka get his fourth win and lower his ERA to 0.98 in six starts. After scoring 14 runs in the series opener, St. Louis was limited to three hits in falling for the 10th time in its past 13 games. Third baseman Matt Carpenter went 0-for-2 with a walk and is hitting just .199 on the season, batting .115 in his past eight games with six strikeouts and one extra-base hit in that span. Shortstop Paul DeJong collected one hit in four at-bats, and is batting .400 in eight career games against the Braves entering the series finale.

PITCHING MATCHUP: Cardinals RH Adam Wainwright (3-3, 4.15 ERA) vs. Braves RH Julio Teheran (2-4, 4.26)

Wainwright already has made as many starts this season as he did in an injury-marred 2018 (eight), and the 14-year veteran has given up more than three earned runs only twice. The 37-year-old got a no-decision Friday against Pittsburgh despite not walking a hitter and allowing only one run on five hits with eight strikeouts in a season-best seven innings. Wainwright, who has posted a 3.66 ERA with 34 strikeouts in 39 1/3 innings in his past seven starts, is 9-3 with a 3.29 ERA and 1.284 WHIP in 18 career games (13 starts) against Atlanta.

Teheran has not recorded a decision in his first two May starts but has shaved more than a run off his ERA, giving up just one run on five hits with eight strikeouts and four walks in 12 innings against Miami and Arizona. The 28-year-old has allowed three earned runs or fewer four times in his past six outings, including six innings of two-hit shutout pitching against Miami on May 5 and one run on three hits surrendered at Arizona on Friday. Teheran, who has held right-handed batters to a .198 average this season, is 2-3 in six lifetime starts against St. Louis with a 3.18 ERA.

WALK-OFFS

1. St. Louis OF Marcell Ozuna leads the majors in homers with runners on base (eight).

2. Atlanta promoted RHP Touki Toussaint from Triple-A Gwinnett and designated LHP Jesse Biddle for assignment prior to Wednesday’s game.

3. Cardinals 2B Kolten Wong is hitting .344 with five homers, 15 RBIs and 10 walks in 20 road games this season.

PREDICTION: Braves 7, Cardinals 5

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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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PITTSBURGH vs ST LOUIS
GAME: Pittsburgh Pirates (19-17) at St. Louis Cardinals (22-18)
DATE/TIME: Sunday, May 12 – 2:15 PM EST
WHERE: Busch Stadium, St. Louis, Missouri

TV: 2:15 p.m. ET, AT&T SportsNet Pittsburgh, FS Midwest (St. Louis)
LINE: -150
PREDICTION: Cardinals 5, Pirates 3

Oddsmakers currently have the ST LOUIS listed as -150 point favorites versus the PITTSBURGH, while the game’s total is sitting at 9.

The Pittsburgh Pirates have managed a total of eight runs over the past three games against the St. Louis Cardinals but have a chance to post a rare road series over their National League Central Division rivals. Pittsburgh looks to make it three consecutive wins following a beating in the series opener when the teams wrap up a four-game set Sunday in St. Louis.

Thursday’s 17-4 drubbing was the 19th road loss in 24 games in the series for Pittsburgh, which has rebounded to post a pair of 2-1 victories over the Cardinals to improve to 7-3 in its last 10 overall. Josh Bell extended his hitting streak to 11 games in style, driving in the tiebreaking run to give him 11 RBIs during that stretch. The season-high run total in the series opener notwithstanding, St. Louis has dropped eight of 10 overall and continues to struggle offensively, scoring one run or fewer in four of the past five games. Previously slumping Paul Goldschmidt has been one of the few bright spots in the series for the Cardinals, going 7-for-12 after collecting one of his team’s two hits in Saturday’s loss.

PITCHING MATCHUP: Pirates LH Steven Brault (0-1, 7.11 ERA) vs. Cardinals RH Dakota Hudson (2-3, 4.63)

Brault acquitted himself well in his first start of the year but did not factor in the decision after giving up a pair of runs on a two-run homer and two hits while striking out five over a season-high four innings versus Texas on Tuesday. He also pitched two scoreless innings in relief against the Rangers a week earlier after being tagged for eight runs over 6 2/3 innings in his first three appearances. Brault was charged with the loss against St. Louis in his season debut.

Hudson labored through five innings in absorbing his second straight defeat last time out, although he did not get much get from his defense as he was charged with eight runs – two earned – in five innings against Philadelphia. The former first-round draft pick pitched considerably better in his previous turn, striking out a season-high seven and giving up two runs (one earned) in six innings at Washington. Hudson has not allowed a run in four relief appearances versus Pittsburgh.

WALK-OFFS

1. Pirates CF Starling Marte has hit safely in six straight games and RF Gregory Polanco has eight RBIs during a four-game string.

2. Cardinals SS Paul DeJong has the team’s lone RBIs in the last two games and has hit safely in seven of eight.

3. Pittsburgh acquired RH Chris Stratton from the Los Angeles Angels in exchange for cash.

PREDICTION: Cardinals 5, Pirates 3

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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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ST LOUIS vs WINNIPEG
When: 8:00 PM  ET, Friday, December 7, 2018
Where: Bell MTS Centre, Winnipeg, Manitoba

TV: 8:05 PM
LINE: 0
PREDICTION: WINNIPEG , ST LOUIS

Oddsmakers currently have the ST LOUIS listed as 175-moneyline favorites versus the WINNIPEG, while the game’s total is sitting at 6.

The Winnipeg Jets return home Friday to face the St. Louis Blues after a successful road trip that pushed their winning streak to a season-high four games. The Jets swept a three-game swing through New Jersey and New York despite missing several key defensemen because of injuries, finishing the trip with back-to-back goals from Jacob Trouba and Adam Lowry early in the third period of Tuesday’s 3-1 victory at the Islanders – Winnipeg’s fifth victory in six games.

“We believe in our system and when you believe in something, good things start to come,” Jets goaltender Connor Hellebuyck told reporters after Tuesday’s game. “It’s huge to get all six points on the three games here. A key for your season.” The Blues are seeking a similar hot streak as losses in seven of their past nine games have sank St. Louis into the Central Division cellar. The struggle continued with Wednesday’s 3-2 shootout loss at home to Edmonton with a 2-0 lead evaporating as the Blues blew a two-goal lead for the fourth time this season. “We just stopped making plays,” St. Louis interim coach Craig Berube told the media afterward. “When you stop making plays, you get the puck out and they just pound it back in and that’s their game.”

TV: 8 p.m. ET, NHL Network; FS Midwest (St. Louis), TSN3 (Winnipeg)

ABOUT THE BLUES (9-13-4): Center Ryan O’Reilly did not register a point Wednesday for only the second time in six games, but leads St. Louis in goals (12) and assists (16). Goaltender Jake Allen stopped 34-of-36 shots against the Oilers but suffered his third loss in his past four games, and has surrendered 10 goals in that span. St. Louis was ranked sixth in the NHL in penalty kill (82.8 percent), but is allowing 3.35 goals per game (24th in the league entering Thursday).

ABOUT THE JETS (17-8-2): Hellebuyck has shaken off a brief slump, winning his past three starts and making 27 saves Tuesday. Forward Patrik Laine entered Thursday leading the NHL in goals (21), five of those coming in a road victory over the Blues on Nov. 24. Forward Nikolaj Ehlers has four goals in his past four games, helping support a defense corps that featured three players Tuesday who started the season in the AHL (Cam Schilling, Nelson Nogier, Sami Niku).

OVERTIME

1. St. Louis F Jaden Schwartz (upper body), F Alexander Steen (concussion) and D Carl Gunnarsson (upper body) took part in Thursday’s morning skate, but are listed as day-to-day.

2. Jets coach Paul Maurice told reporters Thursday that D Dustin Byfuglien (concussion), D Dmitry Kulikov (upper body), D Josh Morrissey (lower body) and F Andrew Copp (concussion) could return Friday.

3. The Blues have allowed four goals or more in four of their past five losses, including eight in last month’s setback to Winnipeg.

PREDICTION: Jets 5, Blues 2

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