It’s a Western Conference matchup between the St. Louis Blues and Utah Mammoth on Thursday night. These Central Division opponents have yet to play this season, with this being the first of four.
Expectations are far different between the two, but we are well over a month into the season, and these teams are just three points apart.
Can Utah snap their three-game losing streak on the second half of a back-to-back? Or will St. Louis step up and insert even more doubt into a divisional rival’s locker room?
Blues vs. Mammoth betting picks and predictions
Utah Mammoth money line (-130)
Utah has had a solid season overall at 10-8-1, and the team has a ton of potential. They have proven they can be a major threat on any given night, but they have certainly cooled off as of late. Utah is now 0-2-1 over their last three games, and just 1-3-1 over their last five.
A high sense of urgency must now be creeping into this locker room, as they are within a tough division featuring the likes of the Minnesota Wild, Dallas Stars, and Colorado Avalanche. In today’s NHL, every point is crucial, but these are huge for Utah.
St. Louis did not come into the season with high expectations, which matches their middling record of 8-8-2. This is due to the current retooling phase they are in, which has included a significant selloff over the past year or more.
They’ve just recently broken a three-game losing streak of their own, but may find themselves back in the losing column here.
On home ice, Utah brings much more to the table in this game, including an electric offense and the NHL’s second-best power play (36.5 percent). St. Louis has been poor on the road at 3-6-1, so while they may have the rest advantage, they have just been too bland of a team to take down what will be a hungry Utah team.
Over 6.5 (+105)
Utah has proven the entire season that they can be an offensive juggernaut, which is no question their main talent. For a majority of October, the Mammoth saw themselves near or at the top of league scoring.
While they are outside the top-five, Utah still averages an elite total of 3.47 goals per game, which is the eighth-highest in the league. More impressively, their power play runs at an all-worldly 36.5 percent, which is second-best.
St. Louis will have their hands full, especially in the expected event that Utah breaks out of their current slump and performs to the level they are capable of,
The Blues are not near the offensive threat, but have done an admirable job scoring (2.94 per game) and have a decent power play (22 percent).
The defensive concern is high in Utah, with a 3.58 goals against average and .866 combined save percentage, both in the depths of the NHL.
Both teams are quite healthy, and are equipped with competent scorers. This should be a very competitive game, bringing us lots of goals.
Robert Thomas to score (+270)
Part of the retooling and selloff phase the Blues have undergone, elite talents on the team are at a minimum. The biggest name remaining on the team is no doubt Robert Thomas.
Thomas is tied for the lead in points on the Blues (14), but it has been a quiet season for him with just three goals. He has scored just twice over the last 11 games, and he is more than due to get going.
He has hit or surpassed 20 goals in four of his last five seasons, but an inability to be available for all 82 games has hindered his results a bit. Over that span, he has a .305 goals per game average, which equates to a nice 25.60 goals over an 84-game span.
Thomas averages the most time on ice for Blues forwards (21:11 per game), but needs to generate more shots. In the three games he has scored, he has accumulated seven shots (2.33 per game). This is much better than his 1.33 average on the season.
Whether it be a winning or losing effort against the Mammoth, Thomas should be an offensive factor and will be leaned on heavily, especially if he and the Blues are down in the game.
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Blues vs. Mammoth odds
St. Louis Blues | +110 |
Utah Mammoth | -130 |
Puck Line | UTA Mammoth -1.5 |
Total | O/U 6.5 |
Blues vs. Mammoth player props
Anytime goalscorer
Logan Cooley (UTA Mammoth) | +185 |
Jimmy Snuggerud (STL Blues) | +185 |
Dylan Guenther (UTA Mammoth) | +185 |
Mason McTavish (STL Blues) | +205 |
Nick Schmaltz (UTA Mammoth) | +210 |
Clayton Keller (UTA Mammoth) | +210 |
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This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.
