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St. Louis vs. New Jersey: NHL Match Prediction
On December 18, St. Louis will play a home match against New Jersey. It is not surprising that bookmakers consider the hosts to be underdogs in this confrontation, since they will have to play against one of the main leaders of the Eastern Conference. However, the Notes finished the previous match against the Devils in their favor with a confident score of 3:0. Will the home stands help them win in the upcoming confrontation? What bet should you place on this event? Find the answers to these questions in our forecast
Command Analysis
St. Louis Blues
USACurrent form
St. Louis is currently in 11th place in the Western Conference and is literally three points behind the playoff zone. After the change of head coach, the team began to show decent results and began to please its fans more often than at the start of the season. Of course, it still cannot get on a long winning streak, but at least it does not lose match after match. Let us recall that not long ago, the "Notes" dealt with Vancouver on the road (4:3 OT), and after unsuccessful matches against San Jose (3:4) and Dallas (1:2 OT), they proved their superiority over the Rangers on their ice with a score of 3:2.
However, in the confrontation with the "cops", the "blues" almost parted with two points, since they had a three-goal advantage throughout the game, but had an unsuccessful final twenty minutes, in which they conceded twice in a row, ensuring a very tense ending. But the club demonstrated extreme discipline and did without a single penalty, not giving the opponent the opportunity to play in the majority.
In general, Jim Montgomery team is not doing well in 4x5 and 3x5, as they currently rank 23rd in the league and have a 76.8% neutralization rate on the opponent power play. The third period remains their worst performance, where they often allow their opponents to score and have a mediocre goal ratio.
Disqualifications and injuries
Leddy, Faksa and Krug will not play in the upcoming match due to injuries.
Interesting trends for betting
- St. Louis averages 26 shots on goal
The "Notes" often act as second fiddle and rarely threaten the opponent goal
- St. Louis is getting 7.41 penalty minutes per game.
According to statistics, the team is sent off at least four times per game
New Jersey Devils
USACurrent form
New Jersey has not ceased to amaze with its performance this season. If last year the team could not secure a place in the playoff zone, then from the very beginning of the new season it has been among the leaders and is still in second place in the Eastern Conference, lagging behind Washington by literally one point. An interesting fact is that since October the club has not had long losing streaks and usually replaces an unsuccessful match with at least one or two victories in a row. For example, the Devils recently stumbled in matches with Colorado (0:4) and Toronto (1:2 OT), but then proved their superiority over Los Angeles (3:1) and Chicago (4:1).
In the last three games, the Devils have managed to get by with less than one missed puck, although this is not entirely typical for them, since they often rely on open hockey and are used to playing on the counter. Let us emphasize that the club still remains one of the most scoring in the league and usually opens up the opponents' defense at least three times.
Typically, Sheldon Keefe team has its best second period, where he has a 43:26 goal-to-goal ratio. Incidentally, Jesper Bratt has already surpassed the 40-goal-to-assist mark, and Jack Huh is right behind him with 39.
Disqualifications and injuries
Lazar and Allen will not be able to take part in the upcoming fight due to injuries.
Interesting trends for betting
- New Jersey averages nine minutes in penalties
The team is not known for its good discipline and is sent off at least four or five times per match.
- New Jersey now has a 30% power play rate
The team currently ranks second in the league in this indicator.
Trends
Bet 1st period: total over 1.5 goals
In three out of five matches between the clubs, the first period was productive
1.85Bet 2nd period: both teams to score
In four of the five head-to-head meetings, both teams scored goals in the second period.
2.25Tip and bets
We think that St. Louis is quite capable of earning two points in the upcoming confrontation. The Notes are definitely an inconvenient opponent for New Jersey and it is no coincidence that they have won most of their previous face-to-face encounters. Just last month, the Blues dealt with their opponent with a score of 3:0, without experiencing any serious difficulties. Plus, in the last nine out of ten meetings, Jim Montgomery team has managed without defeats by more than one goal and has always given a worthy rebuff even to the championship leaders. We think that they will fight for points on their home ice as well.
Prediction - St. Louis win with Asian handicap (+1) on goals for 1.70
Bet on individual total
St. Louis, with Jim Montgomery as head coach, has shown better defensive play and now often ends up with no more than two or three missed goals. Even in the last matchup with the Rangers, the hosts only missed twice. New Jersey has recently been playing a closed style of play and has also shown rather low efficiency. Note that in four out of five games, the Devils have not scored more than three goals.
We bet on the individual total of New Jersey under 3.5 goals for 1.60
Total Bet
The last match between the teams ended with only three goals scored. St. Louis and New Jersey are not currently considered teams that play counter-pitch hockey. They have begun to pay more attention to defense and have begun to concede significantly fewer goals than before. Overall, the last five meetings involving the Devils have ended with fewer than six goals, so we suggest betting on the total under.
We take the total under 5.5 pucks for 1.95
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