by OddsShark (@OddsShark) – Sponsored Post
Here’s a look at the NHL odds and betting trends for the full slate of games on today’s schedule. All NHL betting lines are as listed at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com.
Sharks at Blues | OddsShark Matchup Report
Opening NHL Odds: Blues -150 Favorites
The Blues took charge of the Western Conference final with a dominant 5-0 rout of the Sharks on Sunday in Game 5, cashing as +120 road underdogs to pull within one victory of advancing to their first Stanley Cup final since 1970. St. Louis got a hat trick from Jaden Schwartz, who now has more goals in the playoffs (12) than he did during the entire regular season (11).
Rookie goaltender Jordan Binnington also was stellar between the pipes, recording his first postseason shutout by stopping all 21 shots he faced. In fact, Binnington has turned away 50 of 51 shots in the last two games combined, leading the way defensively for the Blues as they have outscored their opponent by a 7-1 margin to pick up a pair of wins.
It is no coincidence either that they won again in a low-scoring affair, improving to 5-1 in their last six games when then total goes UNDER, according to the OddsShark NHL Database.
San Jose’s offense has suddenly gone silent after scoring 13 goals in the first three games of the series, which is a huge concern heading into Game 6 at St. Louis. The Sharks could be without Erik Karlsson, Joe Pavelski and Tomas Hertl, none of whom were on the ice to finish Game 5 after suffering injuries. Playing without one or more of those three may be a major loss that severely impacts the team’s depth.
The only positive for them is the fact that the Blues have not been a great home team recently, going 4-5 in their last nine playoff games at the Enterprise Center. The UNDER is also 5-2-1 in the last eight games played there, going 3-1 in the past four, with more than three goals scored once in those four.
It is worth noting that San Jose netminder Martin Jones is 4-0 in elimination games this postseason, although he has surrendered six goals in the last two, and both of those were played on home ice.
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