The Nashville Predators (9-9-3) visit the St. Louis Blues (14-4-5) Saturday at Enterprise Center. The puck is scheduled to drop shortly after 8 p.m. ET. We analyze the Predators-Blues sports betting odds and lines, while providing NHL betting tips and picks around this matchup.
Predators at Blues: Projected starting goalies
Pekka Rinne vs. Jordan Binnington
The 37-year-old Rinne has fallen to 8-4-2 on the season after dropping each of his last four decisions. He allowed at least four goals in each of those starts and his save percentage has dropped all the way to .889 with a 3.06 goals against average.
Binnington is tied for the league lead with 11 wins and four overtime/shootout losses while being hit with just three regulation losses. He has a .926 SV% and 2.19 GAA in the early going of his sophomore campaign.
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Predators at Blues: Odds, picks and betting tips
Odds courtesy of BetMGM; access them at USA TODAY Sports for a full set of today’s betting odds. Odds last updated 4:30 p.m. ET.
Prediction
Predators 3, Blues 2
Moneyline (ML)
The PREDATORS (+110) come in at full health as they go up against a Blues (-134) team still missing RW Vladimir Tarasenko (shoulder). The Blues, No. 1 in the Central Division, have won two straight and are 7-2-3 at home. The Predators, sixth in the division, have lost six in a row and are just 3-4-1 outside of Music City.
Both sides are rested, however, and the Preds possess a shot differential of plus-5.0 to the Blues’ minus-0.8 rating. Nashville has an analytical advantage with better rates of expected goals and scoring chances than St. Louis.
New to sports betting? A $10 wager the Predators to win straight up would return a profit of $11.
Puck Line/Against the Spread (ATS)
The Preds are just 8-13 ATS overall and 3-5 on the road. The Blues are 10-13 ATS overall and 4-8 at home. While I think Nashville wins this one outright with a little puck-luck correction, the PREDATORS (+1.5, -250) are a good choice on the puck line for a little insurance in the event of a one-goal loss. It’s a less-profitable play, but it’s safer than the ML.
Over/Under (O/U)
The UNDER 5.5 (-106) is the play with Rinne a much better goaltender than his recent numbers suggest. The Predators are 6-4 against the O/U across their last 10 games while the Blues are just 3-7. Look for a tighter defensive effort from the visitors as they match the style of the hosts.
New to sports betting? A $10 bet for the Blues and Predators to combine for five or fewer goals scored returns a profit of $9.43.
Esten’s NHL betting record: 67-63
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