In their first head-to-head meeting of the regular season, the St. Louis Blues and the Detroit Red Wings take the ice at Little Caesars Arena. The puck drops at 7 p.m. ET on Wednesday, November 28, and fans at home can view this East-West matchup live on NBC Sports Network.
St. Louis Blues at Detroit Red Wings Odds
St. Louis (-120) is favored over Detroit (+100), and the Over/Under (O/U) is placed at 6 goals (-125 for the over, +105 for the under).
The Red Wings are 10-14 straight up (SU) and have punished moneyline bettors to the tune of -0.1 units so far. That early-season winning percentage isn’t too far off from to what the team posted during the 2017-18 season (30-52). Through 24 regular season contests, 12 of the team’s games have gone under the total, while 11 have gone over and just one has pushed. The team’s 6-7 SU at home this season.
Detroit’s converted on 20.6 percent of its power play opportunities this season, a mark that’s right around league average. On the other hand, its penalty kill is ranked 16th overall, and it’s successfully killed off 80.2 percent of all penalties.
Detroit, as a collective unit, has been penalized 4.3 times per game overall this season, and 2.8 per game over its last five match ups. The team has had to kill penalties for just 7.9 minutes per game over its last 10 matchups, in total.
With a .922 save percentage and 29.8 saves per game, Jimmy Howard (7-10-3) has been the most dependable goalkeeper for the Red Wings this season. If they, however, decide to rest him, the team could roll with Jonathan Bernier (3-6-6 record, .892 save percentage, 3.63 goals against average).
The Wings will continue to lean on the offensive production from Dylan Larkin and Gustav Nyquist. Larkin (21 points) is up to nine goals and 12 assists and has recorded two or more points on five separate occasions this year. Nyquist has three goals and 14 assists to his credit and has notched a point in 13 contests.
St. Louis has lost 8.1 units for moneyline bettors this year and is currently 8-14 straight up (SU). A total of 11 of its outings have gone under the total, while 10 have gone over and just one has pushed. St. Louis’ 2-6 SU as the away team this season.
St. Louis has converted on 22.7 percent of its power play chances this year, a mark that’s good enough for 10th-best in the league. On the other hand, its penalty kill unit is ranked 14th overall and it’s successfully defended 81.2 percent of all penalties.
St. Louis’ players have been penalized 3.9 times per game this season, 4.0 per game over their past five contests total, and 3.8 per game over their last five on the road. The team’s been forced to stave off opponent power plays just 8.2 minutes per game over their last five road outings.
Jake Allen (.896 save percentage and 3.27 goals against average) has been the main option in goal for St. Louis. Allen is averaging 25.8 saves per game and has six wins, 11 losses, and three overtime losses to his credit.
Ryan O’Reilly (12 goals, 14 assists) will pace the offensive attack for the visiting Blues.
St. Louis Blues vs. Detroit Red Wings Betting Predictions
Free NHL Pick: SU Winner – Red Wings, O/U – Under
Betting Notes
- The total has gone under in four of Detroit’s last five outings.
- The Red Wings are 7-7 SU when they serve more penalty minutes than their opponent while the Blues are 1-5 SU in games where they spend more time in the box than their opponent.
- Detroit skaters have created 7.4 takeaways per game over its last five home games, a slight drop from its season average of 6.7 takeaways per game (ranked 23rd).
- St. Louis has averaged 8.2 takeaways per game over its last five road games, its season average of 7.7 takeaways per game (ranked 14th overall).
