NHL Best Bets: Jets’ Scoring Blues

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St. Louis Defence Singing the Blues

No one ever knows when a team will hit rocky waters. Four years ago the St. Louis Blues earned their first-ever Stanley Cup championship, riding off the bewitching exploits of goalie Jordon Binnington. As recently as a year ago they finished the season with the 11th-best goals-against average. This year, however, they languish in 26^th, with their previous hero sporting a mediocre 3.27 GAA and a .892 save percentage.

Moreover, the Blues have coughed up at least four goals in seven of their last nine contests. Their defensive and goaltending woes have resulted in a five-game losing streak (as of Jan. 31). Even Chicago, one of the NHL’s bottom dwellers, netted five times off of 18 shots! Can they improve after the All-Star break? It will be difficult. Their first game on Feb. 11 is against the Arizona Coyotes, who hammered them 5-0. Even so, the Coyotes have one of the worst attacks in the NHL, so it could be a pick-me-up for St. Louis. Then come both Florida and New Jersey on the 14^th and 16^th, two top-10 offences. St. Louis’ defence might be singing the blues in those games. The Over feels like a good bet.

Winnipeg’s Offensive Funk

On the other end of the spectrum are the Winnipeg Jets. They currently have the 13th-ranked attack with 3.19 goals scored per outing. However, that number has dwindled in recent weeks. Prior to Monday’s 4-2 win over the Blues (the fourth score coming on an empty netter), the Jets had mustered more than two goals in a contest only twice in the previous eight opportunities. That’s a considerable statistic given that they have five players in double-digits, with Mark Scheifele (31), Kyle Connor (24), and Pierre-Luc Dubois (22) leading the troupe.

Can the engines rev up sooner rather than later? It would seem like the first few games after the break are ripe with opportunities. They open the back end of the campaign at home to Chicago, one of the worst teams in the NHL and 27^th in goals against per game. The Kraken pay a visit on Valentine’s Day, but don’t be fooled by their first-place status in the Pacific. They cough up at least three goals per tilt. Finally, Winnipeg makes its way to Columbus on Feb. 16 to play the Blue Jackets, the 30^th-ranked squad for scores conceded. The Over has some good chances in those games.

Carolina Cooking up a Storm

True to their namesake, the Hurricanes are putting opponents in a whirlwind at just the right time. The New Year looked to spell disaster when they conceded defeat four times from Jan. 3 through Jan. 10. Since then, the club has strung together five wins in a row, with the crown jewel coming this past Sunday when they handled the Bruins with surprising ease, 4-1. Martin Necas (21), Sebastian Aho (21), and Andrei Svechnikov (19) are doing most of the damage.

At the time of writing (Jan. 31), they host the Los Angeles Kings, who are second in the Pacific Division. That will be a tough out, although L.A. is not a very strong defensive squad (3.40 goals given up per contest). They fly to Buffalo to play the Sabres on Wednesday just before the All-Star break. Buffalo is a surprisingly mediocre home team at 11-12-2. Those two tilts feel like good bets for any of the team’s top three scorers to add to their respective numbers. Post-break dates will be a different story, with the Rangers and Capitals on the docket, both top 10 defences.

Sunny Future for Los Angeles?

So much of the NHL conversation is eaten up by the Bruins, Ovechkin’s career-defining goal tally, the surging Kraken, and whether Winnipeg or Toronto can finally end the Canadian Stanley Cup drought, that one team that’s played rather well has flown under the radar: the Los Angeles Kings.

Pay close attention to the standings and one will notice that L.A. trails Seattle in the Pacific Division by only one point. In fact, they trail Dallas in the entire Western Conference by four points. That’s two little wins. Another stat that pops out is, for a team fighting to be the top dog in the entire conference, they have a paltry -9 goal differential. The Kraken is +26 yet clings to a precious one-point advantage. L.A. wins close games and often gets trounced in defeat. Their scoring leader sheet is another fun discovery. Through 51 games only one player has netted 20 times (Adrien Kempe). Conversely, seven players have hit double-digits. It’s an interesting oddity, but the woes in the back (3.40 goals conceded per game) suggest they will not win the Pacific Division.

Golden Knights not Cashing In

Staying in the Pacific Division, the Las Vegas Golden Knights are in that fight for first place alongside the Kings. Just as Los Angeles has some statistical quirks, so too does Las Vegas. In the latter’s case, it’s the comparison between their admirable away record (15-5-4) against their alarmingly mediocre home tally (14-13). In fact, less than a week ago the Golden Knights had only lost one road game in regulation, but have flailed on their current travels.

If the Knights want to improve their chances at success down the road, it goes without saying they need to perform better in the confines of the T-Mobile Arena. Can they? We think so. While their travels continue for a few days after the break (away to Nashville and Minnesota), they return to the desert to host Anaheim, San Jose, and Tampa Bay. Anaheim is a disaster this season, San Jose is not much better (although they too play better hockey on the road), and Tampa Bay is not the same team away from Florida (12-11). The Knights should be good picks on the money line.