History will tell you that the Chicago Blackhawks should win a Game 7 against just about anyone else in the NHL. History will also tell you that the St. Louis Blues blew their chances to finish off their rivals and now are faced with the inevitable collapse one last time after holding a 3-1 series lead.
But history also tells you that anything can happen in the NHL playoffs, and you'd be a fool if you really thought this series was over with just because the defending champs erased a two-game deficit against a really good team. The Blues are going to fight their butts off in Game 7 in a series which clearly could go either way.
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ODDS ANALYSIS
This one may as well be lined at a pick 'em. Would you really be all that surprised if either one of these teams were -120 on the moneyline? You could justify either side for sure, and as a result, the oddsmakers are likely to line both teams within a few cents of -110 one way or the other alongside a very vanilla total of 5.
GOALIE REPORT
Brian Elliott has been all over the place in this series. There have been times when he's looked ridiculously good, but there have also been times where he's looked like this moment is just too big for him.
His playoff history suggests that Elliott isn't ready for this. His save percentage started at just 88 percent in the postseason coming into this year, and though he's raised that by posting a .928 save percentage in these first six games, his numbers are getting shoddier and shoddier as time goes by.
Corey Crawford hasn't been brilliant, but he's made huge saves late in games when he's had to. The sign of a champion is to be able to bounce back from bad situations. Surely, Crawford has his mates to thank for coming back in games which he's made a mess out of like in Game 6 when the Blackhawks were down 3-1 at the end of the first period, but he did himself favors as well by stopping the last 19 shots he faced for the game.
LIVE BETTING
Virtually everything about these two teams has been the same in this series. They're separated by just two goals and four penalty minutes. Heck, they both have five power play goals, too.
But if you're a live bettor in this one, which side would you rather have? The answer to that is very clear knowing that one of these teams has had the pedigree of winning Stanley Cups. The other is 0-9 in elimination games since 2000.
QUICK PICK
Records were meant to be broken, and run of form is bound to end sooner or later. Let's not forget that in these playoffs, we've already seen all sorts of underdogs come to the forefront and at least make series out of situations where there probably shouldn't have been otherwise.
The Blues aren't your average, run-of-the-mill team. They won 49 games in the regular season, including 24 here at home. They've got stars in Vladimir Tarasenko and Alexander Steen, and they know they've had moments in this series where they've definitively looked like the better team.
Does that mean the Blues are going to win Game 7? Not necessarily. But we're giving them a chance, and we think it'll be a disgrace if they're dogs in this game. St. Louis will present the better value, like it or not on Monday night in front of a raucous crowd at the Scottrade Center.
NHL Odds: Blues 3, Blackhawks 2
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