St. Louis Blues vs. Chicago Blackhawks Prediction, NHL Odds
This is essentially the lone bright spot of the season for the Chicago Blackhawks, who sit dead last in the NHL following a 5-1 loss against Dallas on Sunday. The Blues also lost on Sunday, falling 4-2 against Buffalo, putting St. Louis four points back of a wild-card spot.
The Blues are slim -135 favourites on the NHL odds, with the total set at 5.5.
Blues vs. Blackhawks NHL Betting Odds
This is the first meeting between the Central Division rivals this season. St. Louis has come out on top in eight of the last 10 head-to-heads, with the Over/Under going 5-4-1 in that span.
It’s obviously been a hugely disappointing year for Chicago, who have dropped four of their last five games overall and five of their last six against Western Conference teams. The Blues have actually been a moderately successful road team at 10-8-3 this season, but it’s tough to say if that will translate to an outdoor game.
If you’re looking for a cover option, St. Louis is likely the way to go at 22-16 against the spread compared to 18-19 ATS for the Hawks. The Blues have covered in 14 of 21 road dates, while Chicago has failed to cover in half of their home games.
Both teams have played the Under in a majority of their games this year. Low scoring could be the play again on Tuesday as the total has gone Under in six of St. Louis’ last eight games.
One interesting note about the game, this will be the first rematch in Winter Classic history after St. Louis previously beat Chicago 4-1 at Busch Stadium in 2017.
St. Louis Blues
Brayden Schenn and Nathan Walker scored for the Blues in Sunday’s losing effort, although you could argue St. Louis deserved to win. They heavily outshot Buffalo 37-16, but Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen stood on his head with 35 saves. Jordan Binnington had a performance that was far from acceptable, finishing with just 12 saves. Binnington, who is expected to have the edge as Canada’s starter at the upcoming 4 Nations Face-Off, has struggled in the month of December, posting a 2-5-1 record while allowing 23 goals on 201 shots in that span. Overall, he has a 9-14-3 record with an .895 save percentage and 2.93 goals-against average.
Some history will be made on Tuesday as Blues defenceman Cam Fowler will become the first player to reach the 1,000-game milestone in an outdoor game. Experience, albeit in outdoor games, will be key for St. Louis as the roster boasts 17 players who have played an outdoor game. The Blues just played an outdoor game in Minnesota two years ago, while Chicago has completely blown up their roster since their last outdoor game in 2019.
Chicago Blackhawks
Connor Bedard was the only Chicago player to find the back of the net against Dallas on Sunday, which isn’t surprising given he leads the team with 32 points (10G, 22A), eight more than the next closest player. Generating offence has been a major concern for the Blackhawks all year. Chicago ranks 30th both in average goals (2.51) and average shots (25.4) per game, although they are a respectable 13th in power play percentage (22.3).
Arvid Soderblom made 30 saves on 35 shots against the Stars, but it is believed Petr Mrazek will get the start on Tuesday. Mrazek is one of the few Blackhawks players with outdoor game experience. He’s been part of four outdoors games, as a backup up twice for Detroit in 2014 and 2017 and as a starter for Detroit in 2016 and for Toronto in 2022. Mrazek (7-13-1, 3.09 GAA, .897 SV) is mired in a tough stretch that has seen him go 0-5-0 with a 4.74 GAA and .844 SV in his last six appearances.
STL
CHI