PREMIUM
Rogers' NHL ICE BREAKER >> SPECIAL OFFER! 3-1-1 Sunday!
(NHL) Florida vs. St. Louis,
Money Line: -134.00 St. Louis (Home)
Result: Loss
Money Line: -134.00 St. Louis (Home)
Result: Loss
The set-up: The 27-20-10 Florida Panthers cap a five-game road trip tonight in St; Louis against the 31-23-5 Blues. The Panthers edged the Kings 3-2 on Saturday, which followed wins at Nashville, San Jose and Anaheim, which means Florida has a chance to make it a perfect 5-0 sweep on the trip, tonight. However, the Blues had won six consecutive games before losing 3-2 at Buffalo on Saturday and are 18-9-4 at home for the season.
Florida: The Panthers totaled 17 goals in winning the first three games of their road trip, then eked out a 3-2 win against the Kings. The Panthers enter tonight's game having won seven of their last eight games as they battle for a playoff position in the Eastern Conference. Florida reached the playoffs last year for the first time in four seasons but then was eliminated in the first round. A return to health has sparked the Panthers winning ways. Aleksander Barkov has eight points (five goals) in six games and defenseman Alex Petrovic has been solid since both had long stints on injured reserve while Jonathan Huberdeau has collected eight points in his first six contests of the season following an Achilles injury.
St. Louis: Florida has an interim head coach in Tom Rowe but he took over for Gerard Gallant in late November, while the Blues just recently made a coaching change by replacing Ken Hitchcock at the beginning of February with Mike Yeo. St. Louis has responded by winning seven of nine! The Blues have allowed just 14 goals in their nine February games (1.56 per), as both Jake Allen and Carter Hutton have raised their level of play when in net. Allen is 5-2-0 with a .934 save percentage this month and Hutton has posted three of his eight career shutouts over his last four starts.
The pick: Sweeping a five-game road trip just may be asking too much and let's note that the Blues have won seven of the last eight meetings between the two clubs. St. Louis has played well on home ice all season and remember that Florida was just 9-10-7 on the road when it began this road trek back on Feb. 11. The Panthers have won games in San Jose, Anaheim and Los Angeles on the same trip for the first time in club history. In fact, Saturday's win was their first in Los Angeles since 2002. The streak ends here. Make the Blues an 8* play.
Florida: The Panthers totaled 17 goals in winning the first three games of their road trip, then eked out a 3-2 win against the Kings. The Panthers enter tonight's game having won seven of their last eight games as they battle for a playoff position in the Eastern Conference. Florida reached the playoffs last year for the first time in four seasons but then was eliminated in the first round. A return to health has sparked the Panthers winning ways. Aleksander Barkov has eight points (five goals) in six games and defenseman Alex Petrovic has been solid since both had long stints on injured reserve while Jonathan Huberdeau has collected eight points in his first six contests of the season following an Achilles injury.
St. Louis: Florida has an interim head coach in Tom Rowe but he took over for Gerard Gallant in late November, while the Blues just recently made a coaching change by replacing Ken Hitchcock at the beginning of February with Mike Yeo. St. Louis has responded by winning seven of nine! The Blues have allowed just 14 goals in their nine February games (1.56 per), as both Jake Allen and Carter Hutton have raised their level of play when in net. Allen is 5-2-0 with a .934 save percentage this month and Hutton has posted three of his eight career shutouts over his last four starts.
The pick: Sweeping a five-game road trip just may be asking too much and let's note that the Blues have won seven of the last eight meetings between the two clubs. St. Louis has played well on home ice all season and remember that Florida was just 9-10-7 on the road when it began this road trek back on Feb. 11. The Panthers have won games in San Jose, Anaheim and Los Angeles on the same trip for the first time in club history. In fact, Saturday's win was their first in Los Angeles since 2002. The streak ends here. Make the Blues an 8* play.
