In a wild West Division showdown on Monday, the St. Louis Blues exploded with a four-goal second period, defeating the San Jose Sharks 5-4. The two teams will rematch Wednesday night with a 9:00 P.M. Eastern puck drop.
The Blues (2-1-0) are heavy favorites at (-186), while the Sharks (1-2-0) are (+160).
San Jose Sharks Preview
Since their season-opening shootout win over the Arizona Coyotes, the Sharks have dropped two straight. Neither Devan Dubnyk nor Martin Jones has looked particularly comfortable in net. Dubnyk is likely to get the start Wednesday. On the season, he’s posted an 0-1-0 record with a 4.23 GAA, and a .857 save percentage in two games. If Jones goes, he has a 1-1-0 record, a 4.34 GAA, and a .869 save percentage.
Tomáš Hertl is on a three-game point streak and leads the team with six points (three goals, three assists). Six other skaters league-wide are tied with Hertl for the points lead, though only he and New Jersey’s Jack Hughes have played three games; the rest have played four. Expect Hertl’s name on the stat sheet again on Wednesday.
Two-time Norris Trophy-winning defenseman Erik Karlsson is a team-worst -6 on the season, while no other Sharks skater is worse than a -3. While +/- isn’t a stat to put a ton of weight into, it’s useful in showing the outliers, which at this time means Karlsson. He also has only one point through three games, which is well below his career average of 0.82 points per game. If he gets back on track, he is one of the top defensemen in the league at both ends of the ice.
St. Louis Blues Preview
Like the Sharks, the Blues split their opening series. St. Louis beat Colorado 4-1 in the opener, then lost the sequel 8-0 in a game where nothing went right.
However, the Blues turned things around Monday, getting contributions from unlikely places. Defenseman Justin Faulk had a pair of goals, and young forward Jordan Kyrou had a goal and an assist. Newly signed winger Mike Hoffman scored his first goal with St. Louis.
While no longer a rookie, Kyrou has played less than one full season in his career. The 22-year-old started the season on the taxi squad but was called into the lineup once Vladimir Tarasenko was moved to long-term injured reserve. Kyrou leads the Blues in points and slots in as the second line right wing.
The Blues have yet to score a power play goal this year and are one of six teams in that position (seven, if you include Dallas, who has not yet played a game). For a team with the third-best power play in the league a year ago, this looks like a team that hadn’t had an extended training camp and preseason. The goals will come with time.
The Pick is In
St. Louis and Vegas are the favorites to win the Western Division, while San Jose has the fifth-worst Stanley Cup odds. The Blues are the better team and will show it Wednesday night.
Free Pick: St. Louis Blues (-186).
