On January 3, 2019 the St. Louis Blues were dead last in the NHL with the worst record of all the teams in the circuit. They were pronounced dead and buried. After all, the old adage is that if you are not in playoff position on Thanksgiving weekend you are in big time trouble. Which means dead last at New Years is a death sentence. But be careful of messing with someone that has nothing to lose. Interim head coach Craig Berube was as good as terminated come April. That freed him for the gamble of a lifetime. He called up a rookie goaltender named Jordan Binnington. And since that day the Blues have been the best team in hockey. In fact, they are the first St. Louis Blues team since 1970 to make the Stanley Cup Final. Ironically enough it will be against the same franchise that they faced in the Final 49 years ago. The Boston Bruins are favored to defeat St. Louis in the Cup Final.
2019 Stanley Cup Final St. Louis Blues vs. Boston Bruins
Date and Time: Series opens Monday, May 27, 2019
Location: Enterprise Center, St. Louis, Missouri and TD Garden, Boston, Massachusetts
NHL Betting Online Odds at Bookmaker.eu: St. Louis Blues +135, Boston Bruins -155
Blues vs. Bruins TV Coverage: NBC and NBCSN
Odds Analysis
Boston’s steamrolling of the Carolina Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference Final is fresh on everyone’s mind at online sportsbooks. Beyond that the Bruins are an old money blue blood in the NHL, an Original Six team that has legions and generations of fans. They are far more popular and respected than the St. Louis Blues in the eyes of most gamblers.
The Flying Bobby
In 1970 the Boston Bruins swept the St. Louis Blues in the Stanley Cup Final. The Cup clinching goal came on a Sunday afternoon at Boston Garden when Bobby Orr scored in overtime off a perfect give and go pass from Derek Sanderson. As he shot the puck on net Orr flew in the air as the red light came on to signal a championship. Fortunately, the moment was captured forever in one of the most iconic sports photos of all time. As the Blues skated off the ice nobody knew or figured that it would take 49 years for them to return to the Stanley Cup Final.
Berube’s Will
St. Louis interim head coach Craig Berube would not let the Blues quit. In fact, he said that the biggest problem with the Blues was their inability to finish games. Berube changed all of that. But it doesn’t end there. In game three of the Western Conference Final against the San Jose Sharks, the Blues lost 5-4 in overtime. First the Blues allowed a San Jose goal with just over a minute remaining in regulation to blow the win and send the game into overtime. Then in overtime the Sharks got the game winner with the help of an illegal hand pass. All four on-ice game officials missed the call and the video replay rules state that such a play cannot be reviewed. A near riot ensued afterwards. But after the game Berube told fans and players alike to get over it and move on. St. Louis won the next three games that followed to gain the Final.
Free NHL Live Betting Odds Pick
Boston goaltender Tuukka Rask has been lights out so far in the playoffs with a dominant performance. But St. Louis netminder Jordan Binnington has been clutch when it has mattered most. With both teams deep and even the underdog rates as the better value. The St. Louis Blues have been the best team in hockey since January 3.
NHL Live Betting Odds Picks: St. Louis Blues
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