Kings vs Blues NHL Line & Handicapping
Kings Look to Snap Skid in St. Louis Tuesday Night
The Los Angeles Kings kick off 2014 with a visit to St. Louis to play a team that they have won 14 of the last 17 meetings. The problem? LA is currently mired in a four game win streak while the Blues has won three straight and six of seven ahead of Tuesday`s contest.
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Los Angeles (25-12-2-2) at St. Louis (27-7-3-2)
When: 8:00 PM ET, Thursday, January 2, 2014
Where: Scottrade Center, St. Louis, Missouri
Broadcast: FSW (Los Angeles), FSMW (St. Louis)
Kings vs. Blues Betting Lines
Los Angeles Kings +1½ -250 +123 Ov 5 -123 Ov 2½ +100 Un 2½ -130
St Louis Blues -1½ +210 -135 Un 5 +112 Ov 2½ -130 Un 2½ +100
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The Blues won`t be an easy out in these teams’ second meeting of the season – their current streak includes back-to-back wins over the Blackhawks and the Stars this past weekend.
It always seems that if the Los Angeles Kings are struggling it is because of their lack of goal scoring. The Kings haven’t scored more than two goals in five straight games in regulation and overtime and they have just six goals total during their current four game slide.
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Jeff Carter has been the best King by a long shot – 12 points in his last 10 games while Drew Doughty has four points in his last five games and Anze Kopitar has two goals and three assists over his past five games – that`s it for the Kings Hot List. On the flip side Justin Williams and Dustin Brown are pointless in three games and Tyler Toffoli is pointless in five.
Also, the goaltending that had been sterling in Jonathan Quick`s absence has come back down to earth finally. Both Martin Jones and Ben Scrivens are currently on losing streaks although their overall numbers are still solid. Scrivens started the last meeting between the two teams making 25 saves on 27 shots in a win.
The St. Louis Blues continue to click along – third place in the overall standings and an absolute nightmare to play against. David Backes and Alex Steen remain out of the lineup but the Blues keep finding ways to get it done.
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The Blues are averaging a terrific 3.46 goals per game. Jaden Schwartz has a six-game goal-scoring streak, TJ Oshie has three points in two games, Vladimir Tarasenko has four points in three games and Kevin Shattenkirk has 12 points in his last 14 games.
Curiously there are some top names struggling for the Blues ahead of Tuesday`s clash – Brenden Morrow, Derek Roy and Chris Stewart are all pointless in their last three games – something that will change sooner rather than later.
Brian Elliot should get the start Tuesday night – he has been terrific of late. He comes into the game on a personal four game win streak in which he has posted a 1.30 GAA and .948 save percentage.
Dave’s FREE NHL Betting Prediction
A few trends to consider:
• Under is 18-6-9 in LA last 33 road games.
• Under is 3-1-4 in LA last 8 vs. Central.
• Under is 32-15-6 in LA last 53 Thu. games.
• STL are 2-12 in their last 14 vs. Pacific.
• Over is 10-4-1 in STL last 15 overall.
• STL are 64-28 in their last 92 home games.
• LA are 15-3 in the last 18 meetings.
This is a battle of two very similar teams and although I looked hard at taking the underdog because of the recent domination in the series, I am going with the hotter of the two squads. LA simply isn`t playing that well while the Blues have looked terrific. The Kings may be St. Louis`s kryptonite but not on Tuesday night.
Pick: St. Louis Blues -135
