Powerhouses Collide As Penguins Host Blues
Sidney Crosby has never scored against the St. Louis Blues. Can he change that on Sunday?
Championship hopefuls meet Sunday as the Pittsburgh Penguins entertain the St. Louis Blues in a potential Stanley Cup preview.
Opening faceoff at Consol Energy Center is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. ET.
St. Louis (47-16-7, 101pts) arrives in the Steel City having emerged as the favorite to lift Lord Stanley’s cup when the finals arrive in June.
As of Friday, leading online sportsbook Bovada had the Blues at 5/1 to win it all, marking the first time all season either the Penguins or Chicago Blackhawks were not top of the hockey futures list. But St. Louis’ stay at the top could be short-lived.
The Blues’ trip to Pittsburgh comes as part of a four-game road trip that has not started well.
On Wednesday, Ken Hitchcock’s side lost 4-0 in Chicago, mustering just 23 shots against the Blackhawks. Normally stellar on the penalty kill, the Blues allowed two power play goals in three attempts.
On Saturday afternoon, the Blues were beaten 4-1 by Hitchcock’s old team, the Philadelphia Flyers, who have brushed away memories of a poor start to emerge as a real threat in the buildup to the postseason.
St. Louis’ offense seemed to have returned to form as the side outshot the Flyers 33-19 but Steve Mason put on a show between the pipes for the home side, stopping all but one of those shots. The Flyers’ offense meanwhile made the most of its few chances, tallying a brace in both the second and third periods to send the Blues to 0-2 on this road trip.
Having been outscored 8-1 in the first two games of this four-game swing, which ends in Toronto on Tuesday, the Blues will now look to fend off the high-scoring Pittsburgh Penguins.
Pittsburgh (46-19-5, 97pts) can in some way identify with St. Louis’ current woes.
The Penguins are just 5-4-3 since the Olympic break and have been bypassed by the Boston Bruins at the top of the Eastern Conference standings, as well as on the hockey futures list.
During this 12 game stretch, Sidney Crosby has recorded 16 points, including three in Saturday’s 4-3 overtime win over the Tampa Bay Lightning. Undeniably an impressive stat, but things haven’t been all that smooth for the captain. Whilst he’s tallied multiple points in five of those games, he’s also recorded five games without a point during that stint. All five of those games saw the Penguins lose out.
Crosby – leading the team in points (91), goals (33) and assists (58) on the season – will likely play a huge part in Sunday’s game against the Blues, one way or the other.
If the Penguins are to go as Crosby goes, they might not be smiling at the end of this one. St. Louis is one of just three teams – along with Chicago and the San Jose Sharks – that Crosby has yet to score against in his career. The NHL’s top point-getter will look to change that in this one.
Saturday saw Jeff Zatkoff (11-4-1, 2.52 GAA, .918 SV%) make his third appearance in the Pittsburgh net in four games, stopping 21 of 24 shots. He may get the nod again on Sunday, although head coach Dan Bylsma may opt to rest him in favor of regular starter Marc-Andre Fleury. But Fleury (34-15-4, 2.35 GAA, .915 SV%) is just 5-4-3 since January 1, and has lost in each of his last three games.
At the other end of the ice, Hitchcock will need to make a choice between Ryan Miller (22-23-4, 2.57 GAA, .923 SV%) or Brian Elliot (16-5-2, 2.06 GAA, .917 SV%). Miller is 7-2-1 since arriving in St. Louis via a trade from Buffalo, but he’s played in six straight and rest might be preferable to playing in back-to-back games.
St. Louis Blues vs. Pittsburgh Penguins odds for 03/23/2014
Pittsburgh opened as the favorite over St. Louis on the moneyline, a result of the team’s solid home form.
The Penguins are 19-2-2 in their last 23 games at Consol Energy Center, and have tallied a 26-5-2 record in the building this season.
St. Louis meanwhile is 22-11-3 on the road this year, and will be looking to bounce back from those two road losses earlier this week.
The Blues picked up a win when these two teams met at Scottrade Center back on November 9. Kevin Shattenkirk scored midway through the third to give the Blues a 2-1 victory.
The Penguins were outshot 32-20 on that night. Only two other games this season have seen Pittsburgh record fewer shots, both of which came earlier this month.
St. Louis has won on two of its last three visits to Consol Energy Center and is 6-2-2 in its last 10 games in the head-to-head series.
The total opened at 5.5.
Both the Penguins and Blues rank in the NHL’s top five in scoring, which would indicate the over might be the smart bet. But both also rank in the top 10 in defense, so the defense could cancel out the offense.
Recent history would suggest the under is the more appropriate bet; seven of the last 10 between the two sides have seen the total go under, while two have resulted in a push. By default then, just one game in the last 10 has seen the total go over.
Ryan Miller’s move to St. Louis has been a productive one but he may be rested on Sunday.
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