Kings vs Blues NHL Line & Handicapping
Western Conference Heavyweights Do Battle Thursday – Kings Visit Blues
Two of the favorites to challenge for the Western Conference title throw down on Thursday night when the Los Angeles Kings travel to St. Louis to take on a Blues team that has been scorching of late. Both teams are coming off low scoring wins but only one team has played like a serious contender lately. The Blues are 10-1-1 in their last 12 games while the Kings are just 3-6-1 in their last 10.
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Los Angeles (28-14-2-3) at St. Louis (32-8-3-2)
When: 8:00 PM ET, Thursday, January 16, 2014
Where: Scottrade Center, St. Louis, Missouri
Broadcast: TSN2, NBCSN
Kings vs. Blues Betting Lines
Los Angeles Kings +1½ -225 +129 Ov 5 -111
St Louis Blues -1½ +195 -142 Un 5 +101
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The Los Angeles Kings may have been lucky to record a win Monday night at home against Vancouver. LA was outplayed in every facet of the game but won 1-0 thanks to Jonathan Quick who has been sensational since returning from injury.
The Kings have turned things around a bit since the return of Quick – they are 3-1-1 in the five games he has started since his return with an impressive 1.39 GAA over that span. Quick, as per usual gives the Kings a chance to win each and every night and he has owned the Blues in the past. He is 12-3-0 with an incredible 1.33 GAA in his last 15 starts versus St. Louis including playoffs.
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LA has been plagued by a familiar foe the last couple of weeks – goal scoring has become a problem once again. The Kings, despite a ton of talent on the team are 22nd in the league in goals for – just 2.4 per game. Jeff Carter has 17 points in 16 games – he is the only Hot King as we head into Thursday night`s clash. Drew Doughty has just one point in four games, Dwight King is pointless in three games and the rest of the supporting cast has not been great – not a good sign with a visit to St. Louis on the horizon.
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The St. Louis Blues on the other hand have had no issues scoring goals – they are tops in the NHL with an average of 3.5 goals per game. They are third on the power play at 24.7% and are also terrific defensively – third in goals against (2.2 per game) and they own the league`s fifth ranked penalty kill (85.3%).
Alex Pietrangelo has nine points in six games, TJ Oshie has nine points in eight games, Patrik Berglund has five points in five games, Jordan Leopold has three points in three games and Kevin Shattenkirk has 17 points in his last 20 games. The Blues are deep and everybody seems to be contributing for this team – they are an absolute nightmare to handle at this point.
Dave’s FREE NHL Betting Prediction
A few trends to consider:
• LA are 7-2 in their last 9 Thu. games.
• Under is 18-6-10 in LA last 34 road games.
• LA are 2-6 in their last 8 vs. Western Conference.
• Over is 7-1-1 in STL last 9 home games.
• STL are 7-1 in their last 8 vs. Western Conference.
• Under is 5-2-1 in STL last 8 overall.
• Home team is 7-1 in the last 8 meetings.
• LA are 13-3 in the last 16 meetings.
The Los Angeles Kings have lost five straight games away from home while the Blues have won an impressive 10 straight games on home ice. It is hard to imagine the Kings snapping a road losing streak against the second best home team in the league Thursday. The Blues beat the Kings January 2 on home ice 5-0 – I see more of the same Thursday.
Pick: St. Louis Blues -142
