After a night of extra hockey that saw the home team pick up the win in overtime, the St. Louis Blues and Chicago Blackhawks don’t have much time to rest and will be back on the ice Friday night. The Blues won the first game of the series 1-0 in a game highlighted with great play between the pipes and now the Blackhawks need to even it up or else face an 0-2 hole once again to the Blues going back to Chicago.
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ODDS ANALYSIS
Since the Blues won the first game of the series, the odds will likely lean a little more towards the Blackhawks in Game 2. It wouldn’t be surprising if this game was essentially a toss-up with each team lined at -110 to win.
If there’s one thing we know about playoff hockey, it’s that the home team doesn’t have as much of an advantage as it does in almost any other sport. It’s rare that any game is an overwhelming favorite due to the unpredictable nature of the game and the Blackhawks will have a great chance to even the series.
GOALIE REPORT
Whether or not you’re a Blackhawks fan, you have to feel bad for Corey Crawford and how he lost his shutout in Game 1. Crawford wasn’t tested much by the Blues in regulation or overtime, and was cool, calm, and collected when he was. That makes it all the more unfair how he was finally beaten in the extra session due to a harmless crossing pass from the boards that deflected off of his defenseman’s skate and through his legs.
Even though it was a brutal loss, Crawford has always been a great playoff goalie that has shown the ability to bounce back.
The first star of the game was Blues’ goaltender Brian Elliott and he deserved every bit of that accolade for how well he played on Wednesday. Elliott stonewalled the Blackhawks 35 times and constantly flustered Chicago scoring chances. Chicago pricked and probed and found holes in the Blues’ defense but Elliott was up to the challenge every time.
In addition to that, at one point in the second period, the Blackhawks had almost five and a half minutes of virtually uninterrupted power play time and came up empty. The playoffs always have at least one goalie that gets hot and if Elliott can be that guy the Blues will be tough to beat.
LIVE BETTING
Both the Blackhawks and Blues weren’t great teams ATS this season with St. Louis holding a 37-45 record against the puck-line and Chicago posting an even worse 35-47 ATS mark. These teams also tend to play more unders than overs thanks to their superb goaltending, with the under going 33-30-20 in Blackhawks games and 41-32-10 in Blues games.
QUICK PICK
These netminders are both fantastic and Elliott has had the Blackhawks number in 2015-16. In three starts against Chicago this season, Elliott has only allowed three goals and has flustered the Blackhawks with his aggressive, challenging style.
However, it’s only a matter of time before the Blackhawks break through and though it won’t be in a big way, it will be enough for Chicago to even the series on the way back to the Windy City. Expect Jonathan Toews to have a point or two and the Blackhawks to get at least one goal on the power play in a Game 2 win.
NHL Odds: Blackhawks 3, Blues 1
Access live betting lines from your mobile device or tablet at BookMaker Sportsbook! You can wager on sporting events as they unfold on television with BookMaker's live betting platform. Real-time spreads, totals, props and moneyline odds are all available by clicking here, so start betting with BookMaker today! The matchup between the Chicago Blackhawks and the St. Louis Blues will start at 8:00 p.m. ET on Friday, April 15, 2016 at Scottrade Center. Game 2 of this series will be televised live on NBCSN.
