Blues vs Oilers Game Preview & Prediction
Western Conference Playoff Contenders Clash
Third-Place Teams Square Off
The St. Louis Blues and Edmonton Oilers are separated by two points in the Western Conference entering Friday’s Western Conference matchup.
The good news is that the Blues vs Oilers are currently sitting in third place in their respective divisions. The bad news is that multiple teams are in a position to challenge them for playoff spots if either of them stumbles.
The teams have almost identical goals-against numbers since the start of February with the Oilers at 3.11 and the Blues at 3.14. The goals scored are also almost the same with St. Louis (3.68) barely ahead of Edmonton (3.67)
The Blues and Oilers are feasting on home cooking but away results have become harder to attain.
The NHL betting lines have listed Edmonton as the favorite in four of its last five home games against St. Louis.
Keep on reading for more information to help with the St. Louis Blues vs Edmonton Oilers’ predictions.
Game information
- Team records: St. Louis 37-20-9 (third in Central Division); Edmonton 38-25-5 (third in Pacific Division)
- Date: Friday, 9 p.m. ET
- Television: ESPN+
- Location: Rogers Place, Edmonton, Alberta
Lineup Changes Continue for Blues
It is not unusual for NHL teams to have to adapt when key players are forced to miss time, especially at this time of the season.
The St. Louis Blues have certainly been doing more than their share of adapting. No St. Louis player has appeared in all 65 games this season. St. Louis has used 21 forwards, 10 defensemen and five goalies.
The Blues head into the key game with Edmonton minus the services of Torey Krug, the team’s top-scoring defenseman and team leader with 14 power-play assists. Forward Jordan Kyrou, who leads the Blues with 62 points, is questionable because of illness.
St. Louis used 26 skaters in the month of March alone. It showed in the results as St. Louis went 0-3-1 in its first four games in March before regrouping a bit as the month wore on.
The Blues are one point ahead of Nashville for third place in the Central Division and just five points from falling out of playoff position.
Eight of the last 10 St. Louis games have featured at least seven combined goals, so that is something to keep in mind when making the Blues vs Oilers prediction.
Oilers Making Playoff Push
Not long ago, there were concerns of the Oilers failing to live up to the potential despite the exploits of the duo of Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl.
Edmonton has missed the playoff in two of the last four seasons, and in the last Stanley Cup playoffs, the Oilers didn’t win a series.
On Feb. 10, there were nine Western Conference teams with more points than Edmonton. Considering that eight teams in each conference make the playoffs, that was a problem.
Since that time, only division leaders Calgary and Colorado have more points than the Oilers. Since that time, McDavid is tied for the NHL lead with 39 points. More importantly, Evander Kane, Zach Hyman and Kailer Yamamoto combined for 32 goals and 55 points to take some of the pressure off McDavid and Draisaitl.
Edmonton has registered points in nine of its last 11 games and leads Vegas by three points in the race for third place in the Pacific Division. They enter the game favored in the St. Louis Blues vs Edmonton Oilers predictions.
Blues vs Oilers Betting Guide
St. Louis has won five of the last seven matchups with Edmonton, including a 4-2 home win on Dec. 29.
Six of the last seven meetings between the teams have been decided by more than one goal. The home and away teams have split the last eight matchups
Edmonton is in better shape from an injury standpoint with only defenseman Kris Russell ruled out of the game.
St. Louis is 7-3-2 in its last 12 road games so keep that in mind when making the St. Louis Blues vs Edmonton Oilers betting prediction.