Welcome to a Tuesday edition of NHL Predictions! We hope your week has had a successful start. We also extend our congratulations to those who survived the first week of the fantasy football playoffs. In addition, we extend our condolences to those whose fantasy football aspirations have come to an unfortunate end. For today’s prediction, we are taking a look at the game between the St. Louis Blues and the New Jersey Devils.
NHL Predictions
St. Louis Blues vs. New Jersey Devils
Time: 8:00 P.M. Eastern Time
TV: FanDuel Sports Network Midwest, MSG Sports Network
Head-to-Head
The Blues and Devils met in New Jersey the week of Thanksgiving. The Blues won, 3-0. By picking up the shutout, Jordan Binnington became the all-time wins leader in Blues history, passing former Blues great and Binnington’s current agent, Mike Liut.
The Blues Story
The Blue Note picked up a win in their last game on Sunday. The win ended a small two-game losing streak. Joel Hofer got the win between the pipes for the Blues. As a result, we can expect Binnington to get the nod Tuesday.
This week is a busy week for the team. The Blues are playing their second of four games. After Tuesday’s game, the Blues will head to Florida for a set of back-to-back games on Thursday and Friday. The team then heads to Detroit before a three-day Christmas break.
Until then, the Blues will look to pick up points and make their way up the standings. Currently, the Blues are only three points out of the top-three spots in the Central Division. Furthermore, the Blues are just two points back in the wild card race. The recent moves show that the Blues are looking to make a run for the playoffs. Four games in six days is certainly a lot, but there are eight points up for grabs. This is a great opportunity for the Blues to improve their place in the standings.
The Devils Story
The Devils are coming off a home win on Saturday. The team is 20-10-3 on the season, good for second in the Metropolitan Division. The key to the Devils success has been the offence. Jesper Bratt leads the team with 41 points while Nico Hischier leads with 16 goals. With 33 of 82 regular-season games played, Bratt has an opportunity to be a 100-point player while Hischier could reach 40 goals.
Furthermore, the Devils have had great success from their goaltending. Jacob Markstrom has the second-most wins the NHL with 15 while having the sixth-best goals against average at 2.35. Former Blue Jake Allen has been durable as well, posting a 2.74 goals against average. It will be interesting to see if Allen gets the start against his former team on Tuesday. However, the Devils have not played since Saturday, so it is possible the Devils will stick with their number one guy and give Allen the start later in the week.
Prediction
The Devils have not allowed more than two goals in three games. In six of the seven games the Blues have played in December, they have two goals or more. Clearly, something is going to give on Tuesday. This is the last time the Blues will see their home fans until after Christmas. We are going to predict the Blue Note give their faithful fans an early Christmas present.
Blues win, 2-1.
Prop Bets
The over/under for the game is 5.5 goals. We are taking the under with three combined goals. We are expecting a goaltender’s due on Tuesday. Of course, when you predict a low goal total, it does make picking anytime scorers a little difficult. We are going to suggest going with each team’s leader in goals. For the Devils, that is Nico Hischier. For the Blues, that is Jordan Kyrou.
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Main Photo: Ed Mulholland-Imagn Images
The post NHL Predictions: December 17th St. Louis Blues Vs. New Jersey Devils appeared first on Last Word On Hockey.