A couple of teams on winning streaks, the Colorado Avalanche and the St. Louis Blues collide at the Scottrade Center for a divisional showdown. Altitude 2 will broadcast the matchup, and the opening face-off takes place at 8 p.m. ET on Thursday, March 15.
Colorado Avalanche vs. St. Louis Blues Odds
St. Louis enters the game as the noticeable favorite with a -165 moneyline. The line for Colorado sits at +145, and the oddsmakers have put the Over/Under (O/U) at 6 goals (-110 for the over, -110 for the under).
St. Louis is 37-32 straight up (SU) and has lost 1.7 units for moneyline bettors this year. That early-season winning percentage is fairly close to the 46-36 record the team produced during the 2016-17 season campaign. 41 of the team’s 69 matches have gone under the total, while 27 have gone over and just one has pushed. This year, the team is 20-14 SU at home.
The Blues have converted on just 15.1 percent of their power play chances this year, a figure that’s ranked 30th overall in the NHL. On the other hand, their penalty kill is rated 14th overall, and they’ve successfully killed off 81.0 percent of all penalties.
As a team, the Blues have been penalized just 3.5 times per game overall this season, 3.0 per game over their past five outings total, and 4.0 per game over their last five at home. The team’s had to kill penalties for just 8.6 minutes per game over their last 10 outings, in total.
Boasting a .907 save percentage and 25.2 saves per game, Jake Allen (21-26-2) has been the primary option in goal for the Blue Notes this year. If the Blue Notes decide to give him the evening off, however, St. Louis may turn to Carter Hutton (17-13-13 record, .934 save percentage, 2.02 goals against average).
The Blue Notes will continue looking for leadership from Brayden Schenn and Vladimir Tarasenko. Schenn (58 points) has tallied 24 goals and 34 assists and has recorded multiple points on 13 separate occasions this year. Tarasenko has 27 goals and 31 assists to his credit and has notched at least one point in 38 contests.
Over on the other bench, Colorado is 37-32 straight up (SU) and has earned 10.3 units for moneyline bettors this year. A total of 37 of its outings have gone over the total, while 27 have gone under and just five have pushed. The Avalanche are 13-22 SU as a road team this season.
The Avalanche have converted on 21.1 percent of their power play chances this year, a figure that’s right around league average. On the other hand, its penalty kill unit is ranked third overall and it’s successfully killed off 83.7 percent of all opponent power plays.
Colorado’s skaters have been penalized 4.2 times per game this season, and 5.0 per game over their past five outings. The team has had to defend opponent power plays 10.0 minutes per contest over their last five road games.
Semyon Varlamov (28.1 saves per game) has been the primary option in goal for Colorado. Varlamov owns a 21-22-6 record, while registering a .914 save percentage and 2.81 goals against average this year.
Leading the offensive counter for the visiting Avalanche will be Nathan MacKinnon, who has 33 goals and 49 assists this year.
Colorado Avalanche at St. Louis Blues Betting Predictions
Free NHL Pick: SU Winner – Blues, O/U – Under
Notes
Betting Notes
Colorado is 1-1 in games decided by a shootout this season while St. Louis is 3-0 in shootouts.
The under has hit in three of St. Louis’ last five outings.
Six of Colorado’s last ten games have been decided by two goals or more. The team is 5-1 in those games.
The Blues this season have registered the 11th-most hits per game (22.4).
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