Sharks Look to Go 2-0 on Blues
The St. Louis Blues and the San Jose Sharks will meet on Monday when they at SAP Center at San Jose. They will be squaring off in game two of the Western Conference Finals series in the NHL Playoffs.
Logan Couture is used to shining under the bright lights of the postseason. He wasn’t alone as the San Jose won the series opener of their the St. Louis. Couture and line-mates Timo Meier and Gustav Nyquist hope to ride the momentum of their eight-point performance into Game Two.
TV: 9 p.m. ET, NBC Sports Network, CBC, Sportsnet, TVA LINE: Sharks -135; O/U: 5.5 -110.
Couture joined Meier with two goals and an assist in Saturday’s 6-3 win over St. Louis. Couture leads the NHL in the playoffs in goals, with 11, and points, with 17. He is three tallies behind captain Joe Pavelski’s franchise record set in 2016. His point total is a good distance behind the 30 he recorded in that playoff year. The Sharks improved to 7-2 at home during this postseason. They took advantage of 12 giveaways to hand the Blues their second loss in the last seven road contests. The Blues’ Ryan O’Reilly, snapped an eight-game goal drought by scoring in the second period of the opener.
This, That, and a Dart Throw
The Blues‘ Jordan Binnington is a finalist for the Calder Memorial Trophy. Why not, as it is on the strength of a sterling 24-5-1 run in the regular season. He did surrender five goals on 24 shots in the series opener. Jaden Schwartz set up defenseman Joel Edmundson’s first-period goal to boost his point total to 12 in the playoffs. He only had 36 in the regular season. RW Vladimir Tarasenko’s minus-3 rating in the series opener dropped him to minus-8. That is tied with Tampa Bay C Steven Stamkos for the worst in the playoffs. F Brayden Schenn has been held off the scoresheet in seven straight games and 11 of 14 in the playoffs.
The Sharks‘ Couture’s 45 playoff goals trail only Washington captain Alex Ovechkin’s 50. This is for the most since 2010. His double-digit goal totals in multiple postseasons made him the sixth active player with that distinction He joined Ovechkin, Jake Guentzel, Evgeni Malkin, Patrick Kane, Nikita Kucherov. Couture is only two playoff points shy of 100. Pavelski is one short of triple digits. Brent Burns, with 15 points, and Erik Karlsson, with 13, have combined for 28 points through the first 15 playoff games. That is the most for a defensive tandem since fellow former Norris Trophy recipients Paul Coffey (17) and Nicklas Lidstrom (15) accomplished the feat with Detroit in 1995.
The Dart Throw: Blues 3, Sharks 1
NHL Playoffs Betting Odds & Trends
| St. Louis Blues |
|---|
| St. Louis is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games |
| St. Louis is 16-8 SU in its last 24 games |
| St. Louis is 5-2 ATS in its last 7 games on the road |
| St. Louis is 5-2 SU in its last 7 games on the road |
| The total has gone OVER in 4 of St. Louis’s last 6 games on the road |
| St. Louis is 2-5 ATS in its last 7 games when playing San Jose |
| St. Louis is 2-5 SU in its last 7 games when playing San Jose |
| The total has gone UNDER in 6 of St. Louis’s last 7 games when playing San Jose |
| St. Louis is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games when playing on the road against San Jose |
| The total has gone UNDER in 4 of St. Louis’s last 6 games when playing on the road against San Jose |
| San Jose Sharks |
|---|
| San Jose is 8-17 ATS in its last 25 games |
| San Jose is 8-3 SU in its last 11 games |
| San Jose is 5-13 ATS in its last 18 games at home |
| San Jose is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games at home |
| The total has gone OVER in 11 of San Jose’s last 13 games at home |
| San Jose is 5-2 ATS in its last 7 games when playing St. Louis |
| San Jose is 5-2 SU in its last 7 games when playing St. Louis |
| The total has gone UNDER in 6 of San Jose’s last 7 games when playing St. Louis |
| San Jose is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against St. Louis |
| The total has gone UNDER in 4 of San Jose’s last 6 games when playing at home against St. Louis |
Next up:
St. Louis home to San Jose Wednesday, May 15
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