Media by Associated Press – Arizona Coyotes goaltender Karel Vejmelka (70) slides over to make a save on a shot as St. Louis Blues left wing Brandon Saad (20) and Coyotes defenseman Troy Stecher (51) watch during the second period of an NHL hockey game in Tempe, Ariz., Thursday, Jan. 26, 2023. The Coyotes won 5-0. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)
The NHL is crawling toward the All-Star break this weekend. What that means is there are a few teams that are already in the clubhouse having finished their first-half schedules. However, a few teams still have some dates to fill before a few days of rest.
Tonight, St. Louis and Winnipeg will have the NHL’s stage all to themselves. For the Blues and Jets, this is a chance to get a positive result before taking time off to think about what they’ve done.
St. Louis Blues at Winnipeg Jets (-220)
The Blues haven’t figured out a way to break through and beat the Jets thus far this season. St. Louis has lost by at least three goals twice this season. The Blues are eight points out of the wild card spot in the Western Conference. Winnipeg, meanwhile, is battling Dallas for first place in the Central Division.
The Blues have struggled defensively lately. St. Louis has allowed four or more goals over the past four games, which has resulted in four losses. The Blues are 28th in the league by generating 28.8 shots per game.
Winnipeg is entering this game in the middle of a run of poor form. The Jets have lost three in a row and five of their past seven. Winnipeg will find a way to recover its form and enter the All-Star break on a positive note.
Over 6.0
St. Louis has seen the total go over in 30 of 45 games. However, it’s not necessarily the Blues’ offense that has been pushing the high action in their games. St. Louis has struggled on the penalty kill, allowing opponents to score on 74.6 percent of their power plays, which ranks 25th in the league. The Blues also allow 3.6 goals per game, which ranks 27th.
Over the past ten games, the total has gone 4-4-2 in St. Louis’ games. Winnipeg has seen most of its games go under the number. The under has a 34-14 record in the Jets’ games. Nine of Winnipeg’s last ten games have gone under the total.
Winnipeg is excellent defensively, only allowing 2.6 goals per game, which ranks fourth in the league. The Jets also kill off penalties at an 86.3 percent rate, which is third in the league.
Brandon Saad over 1.5 shots (-143)
Saad, a Blues left winger, would like to see his goal-scoring production jump up. During January, Saad scored five times during the first four games of the month. However, since then, Saad has only added one more goal to his tally.
Saad’s lack of scoring punch hasn’t been because of a lack of trying. Over the past ten games, Saad has put two or more shots on net six times. In three of those games, he put three or more shots on net. While Winnipeg is stingy defensively, Saad will find an opening to get some shots on net.
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