The defending Stanley Cup champion St. Louis Blues and Colorado Avalanche will both be looking to get back in the win column when the two championship hopefuls square off in an intriguing Western Conference clash on Thursday night. With both teams going all-out for the victory, let’s find out which team is offering the best value against their NHL odds.
Blues vs Avalanche 2019 NHL Lines, Analysis & Prediction
- When: Thursday January 2, 2020 at 9:30 PM ET
- Where: Pepsi Center, Denver, CO
- TV: NBCSN
- Radio: St. Louis / Colorado
- Live Stream: NHL.tv
- NHL Odds: Colorado -135/St. Louis +115 / Total: 6
Why Bet On St. Louis?
The Blues are coming off a humbling 3-1 loss against Phoenix on Tuesday night, but the reigning champs won their previous eight games, so they’ve been on fire for the last two weeks.”If you told us at the start of the year we’d be here, we’d be happy, but you’ve got to keep improving,” Blues goalie Jake Allen told reporters this week.
“Every game is crucial, and you can’t take any points for granted in this league, especially in our division, in our conference. A lot of teams are coming for us, we’re the reigning champs.”
The Blues have gone 13-5-2-1 on the road this season while ranking 13t in scoring 93.12 gpg) and a stellar fourth in goals allowed (2.54 gpg).
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Why Bet On Colorado?
The Avalanche have lost three straight (0-2-1) and five of their last six games, including a convincing 7-4 loss against Winnipeg on Tuesday night.
“We keep shooting (ourselves) in our own leg,” Colorado right wing Mikko Rantanen told reporters. “We do mistakes on our own, you know? It’s costing us right now, so we just have to figure it out. It’s a tough division, tough conference, and we can’t keep dropping these points.”
The Avalanche are 10-7-2-0 on their home ice while ranking first in scoring (3.60 gpg) and 12th in goals allowed (2.95 gpg).
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NHL Betting Trends for St. Louis Blues vs Colorado Avalanche
- Blues are 8-1 in their last 9 overall
- Blues are 8-1 SU in their last 9 games
- The total went UNDER in 4 of St. Louis’ last 6 games
- Avalanche are 4-1 in their last 5 games playing on 1 days rest.
- Avalanche are 1-5 SU in their last 6 games
- The total went OVER in 4 of Colorado’s last 5 games
Blues vs Avalanche Expert Analysis and Prediction
While St. Louis has already beaten Colorado twice this season, including an emphatic 5-2 smackdown on Dec. 16, I’m going with Colorado to get it done in this contest behind their high-scoring offense.
I know the Blues have gone an impressive 8-1 SU in their last 9 games and 11-5 SU in their last 16 road games, but Colorado has gone 7-0 in their last 7 games against a team with a winning percentage above .600 and 5-1 in their last 6 games after allowing 5 goals or more in their previous game.
Colorado has struggled at home this season, but the Avs should be more than fired up for this huge matchup and I believe they’ll get the narrow win at home because of the magnitude of this matchup.
Pick: Colorado 4 St. Louis 3
