The Scottrade Center is the site for a Central Division showdown as the St. Louis Blues welcome the visiting Winnipeg Jets. The opening face-off is at 7 p.m. ET on Saturday, December 16, and you will be able to witness it live on CiTV.
Winnipeg Jets at St. Louis Blues Odds
St. Louis is 21-12 straight up (SU) and has earned moneyline bettors 4.7 units this season. That winning percentage, ranked fourth in the league in this young season, is an improvement over the 46-36 record from last year’s regular season campaign. Out of the team’s 33 regular season outings, 18 of them have gone under the total, while 15 have gone over and none have pushed. This year, the team’s 11-7 SU at home.
The Blues have converted on just 16.1 percent of their power play opportunities this year, a figure that’s ranked 26th overall in the NHL. On the other hand, their penalty kill is ranked 21st overall, and they’ve successfully killed off 79.8 percent of all penalties.
The Blues, as a collective unit, have been penalized just 3.5 times per game overall this season, and 2.8 per game over their past five games. The team has had to kill penalties for just 7.3 minutes per game over their last 10 outings, overall.
Sporting a .911 save percentage and 24.8 saves per game, Jake Allen (17-11-2) has been the best option in goal for St. Louis this season. If St. Louis chooses to rest him, however, head coach Mike Yeo may turn to Carter Hutton (5-3-3 record, .937 save percentage, 1.88 goals against average).
The Blue Notes will continue to lean on the leadership from Brayden Schenn and Jaden Schwartz. Schenn (37 points) has tallied 16 goals and 21 assists and has recorded multiple points on 10 separate occasions this year. Schwartz has 14 goals and 21 assists to his name and has notched at least one point in 20 contests.
Over on the other bench, Winnipeg is 18-14 straight up (SU) and has earned 3.0 units for moneyline bettors this year. A total of 18 of its matches have gone over the total, while 13 have gone under and just one has pushed. As the visiting team so far, the Jets are 7-10 SU.
The Jets currently have the second-strongest power-play unit in the NHL, as they’ve found the net on 26.5 percent of their extra-man opportunities in 2017-18. On the other hand, its penalty kill unit is ranked 20th overall and it’s successfully killed off 80.0 percent of all penalties.
Winnipeg’s skaters have been penalized 4.3 times per game in total this season, 4.0 per game over their last five outings total, and 4.8 per game over their last five road outings. The team’s been forced to kill penalties just 8.5 minutes per game over their last 10 outings.
Connor Hellebuyck (.917 save percentage and 2.54 goals against average) has been the primary option in goal for Winnipeg. Hellebuyck is averaging 26.8 saves per game and owns a 16-10-4 record.
Blake Wheeler (eight goals, 30 assists) has been one of the primary offensive facilitators for the visiting Jets.
Winnipeg Jets at St. Louis Blues Betting Predictions
Predictions: SU Winner – Blues, O/U – Over
Notes
Betting Notes
This game features two of the more physical defenses in the league. Winnipeg skaters have accounted for the 12th-most hits in the league (22.2 per game) while the Blue Notes have recorded the ninth-most (23.5).
