The St. Louis Blues will play the Florida Panthers on Thursday night at Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise, Florida. St. Louis has won two of their last three games, while Florida has lost three of their last four. Let’s take a look at the betting matchup and the Blues vs Panthers prediction.
Blues Preview
The St. Louis Blues are 15-15-1 this year after they lost to Tampa Bay by a score of 6-1 in their last game. St. Louis allowed the first six goals in this game and they never really had a chance in this one. The Blues were out shot by a total of 33-29 and went 1-3 on the power play in the game. St. Louis defeated Dallas by a score of 4-3 and Ottawa by a score of 4-2 in the two games prior to Tampa Bay. The Blues are scoring 2.84 goals per game and they are allowing 3.36 goals against per game, while going 10% on the power play and 79.3% on the penalty kill. Robert Thomas has led St. Louis with 12 goals, 20 assists, and 69 shots on goal. The projected starting goalie for St. Louis is Jordan Binnington, who is 10-10-1 this season with a 3.20 goals against average and a .904 save percentage.
Panthers Preview
The Florida Panthers are 18-11-2 this season after they lost to Calgary by a score of 3-1 in their last game. Florida tied the game at one late in the first period, but couldn’t find any more offense in the game for the loss. The Panthers out shot Calgary by a total of 34-24 and went 1-5 on the power play in the game. Florida defeated Edmonton by a score of 5-1 in the game prior to Calgary, but lost to Vancouver and Seattle before that. The Panthers are scoring 2.94 goals per game and they are allowing 2.58 goals against per game, while going 18.2% on the power play and 82.4% on the penalty kill. Sam Reinhart has led Florida with 18 goals, 21 assists, and 74 shots on goal. The projected starting goalie for Florida is Sergei Bobrovsky, who is 14-8-1 this year with a 2.49 goals against average and a .911 save percentage.
Florida Panthers Team Facts
- The underdogs have won four of the last five games between the Blues and Panthers.
- The Panthers have failed to cover the puck line in each of their last 11 games as favorites against Central Division opponents.
- The home team has won the second period in each of the last three games between the Blues and Panthers.
- The 'Over 2.5 Goals Period 1' market has hit in four of the Panthers' last five games as favorites against Central Division opponents.
St. Louis Blues Team Facts
- The Blues have won each of their last three games as underdogs against the Panthers.
- The Blues have covered the puck line in each of their last four games against the Panthers.
- The Blues have lost the first period in five of their last six games.
- The 'Over 1.5 Goals Period 1' market has hit in 14 of the Blues' last 16 games.
Florida Panthers Player Prop Facts
- Sam Reinhart has scored at least one goal in four of the Panthers' last five games against Central Division opponents at Amerant Bank Arena.
- Sam Reinhart has recorded at least one point in 12 of the Panthers' last 14 home games against Central Division opponents.
- Aaron Ekblad has recorded an assist in each of the Panthers' last three home games.
- Gustav Forsling ranks 1st in the Atlantic Division for Plus/Minus (+19) this season.
St. Louis Blues Player Prop Facts
- Kevin Hayes has recorded at least one point in five of his last six appearances in night games at Amerant Bank Arena.
- Brandon Saad has scored a goal in three of the Blues' last four games against the Panthers.
- Kevin Hayes has recorded at least one assist in four of his last five appearances at Amerant Bank Arena.
- Brayden Schenn has the equal-most multi-goal games for the Blues this season (2).
Matchup/League Facts
- The Florida Panthers rank 3rd in the league for shots against per game this season (27.2).
- The Florida Panthers rank 4th in the league for shots per game this season (33.9).
- The St. Louis Blues rank 32nd in the league in penalty minutes this season (221).
- The St. Louis Blues rank T1st in the league in short handed goals this season (8).
Blues vs Panthers Betting Prediction
St. Louis has won two of their last three games, but they have struggled over the last couple of weeks and will be on the road here. The Blues are 6-10-1 on the road, while Florida is 9-4-0 at home. The Panthers have lost three of their last four games and they have scored one goal or fewer in the three losses. Florida has been a very solid defensive team this year and they have gone under 6.5 goals in five of their last six games. Take the under here.
AUTHOR: David Racey
