St. Louis Blues vs. Winnipeg Jets Series Predictions and Best Bets

by Ryan Cobbett - 4/16/2025

This year’s Presidents Trophy Winner will clash with their division foe St. Louis Blues here in the first round of the playoffs. Winnipeg narrowly beat out the Washington Capitals for the top spot in the league’s standings and they have had control of the Western Conference’s top seed for quite some time. The road team had more success in the regular season series between the Jets and the Blues with the Jets winning the series 3-1 with a +1-goal differential. The Blues enjoyed an incredible second half of the season and will now look to see if they can make any noise in the playoffs.

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Team Summaries

The Winnipeg Jets finished atop the league standings this season as they have 114 points with one game remaining on the schedule. Ater finally getting a healthy Kyle Connor, the Jets play has been elevated to a whole new level. Their +85-goal differential is the best mark in the league, and they had control of the top spot in the Central Division for most of the season. The Jets ranked fourth in the NHL in GF/G (3.37) while also leading the league in GA/G (2.33). The Jets joined Vegas and Tampa Bay as the only three squads to rank in the Top Five in both categories. As mentioned, Connor has given Winnipeg a full season this year and has made the most of it. He leads the team with 96 points, 41 goals, and 55 assists. Mark Scheifele is second on the team in the same categories as he has amassed 86 points, 38 goals, and 48 assists. They have relied heavily on their depth this season and it has benefited them tremendously as they have 11 players with more than 30 points and eight players with at least 15 goals. After reading that, it is hard to believe that the offense isn’t the strength of this Winnipeg team. The strength of this team is Connor Hellebuyck. Hellebuyck has posted a 46-12-3 record across 62 appearances this season and has allowed just 2.02 GA/G with a .924 SV%.

The Blues benefitted greatly from the second half of the season and found their way into the playoffs as a result. After the break, the Blues posted a 19-4-3 record and finished the season with 96 points. They did just enough to finish ahead of the Calgary Flames and claim the final spot in the Western Conference. They finished 14th in the league in GF/G (3.05), but their special teams play has been atrocious. They rank in the bottom half of the league in PP% (22.1%) and their PK% of 74.3% is the sixth worst mark. Their goaltending ranked 12th in the league as they limited opponents to just 2.82 goals per game. Despite missing 12 games, Robert Thomas led the team with 81 points while also leading the way with 60 assists. Following Thomas was the team’s leading goal scorer in Jordan Kyrou who recorded 70 points and 36 goals. The Blues had eight players recording 15 or more goals this season, with five of them reaching the 20-goal milestone. Jordan Binnington posted a 28-22-5 record this season through 56 appearances and he allowed 2.69 GA/G while his backup, Joel Hofer, allowed 2.65 GA/G in 31 appearances.

Goalie Matchup

Hellebuyck has been elite on home ice this season. He posted a 26-3-3 record in front of his fans and allowed just 1.65 GA/G while posting a .936 SV%. Hellebuyck allowed six goals in his three starts against the Blues this season while posting a .922 SV%. Over 45 postseason starts, Hellebuyck has allowed 2.85 GA/G with a .910 SV%. However, over his last 10 starts, he has allowed 4.34 GA/G and posted an abysmal .878 SV%.

Binnington has played significantly better on home ice this season which is worrisome for the Blues since the Jets have home ice advantage here. Binnington posted a 12-11-3 record on the road this season, allowing 2.82 GA/G and posting a .896 SV%. Binnington allowed three goals in his only start against Winnipeg this season back in October. He has 41 career postseason starts where he has allowed 2.73 GA/G. This will be his first trip back to the playoffs since the 2021/22 season.

Skaters to Watch

Winnipeg Jets:

Scheifele has scored 48 of his 86 points on home ice this season while also recording 22 of his 38 goals at home.
Connor has posted just 32 points in 45 playoff games in his career, and he has a +/- rating of -7.
Nikolaj Ehlers (63 points) will miss the beginning of the playoffs with a foot injury as he is listed week-to-week. In addition to Ehlers, Gabriel Vilardi (61 points) is going to be questionable ahead of puck drop in Game 1.

St. Louis Blues:

Dylan Holloway (63 points) is expected to miss the beginning of the playoffs with a lower body injury.
Pavel Buchnevich has recorded 56% of his points and 55% of his goals on the road this season.
Thomas has recorded just 18 points (4g, 14a) and has a +/- rating of -9 in his 45 career playoff games. This is his first taste of postseason action since the 2021/22 season.

Series Pick

Both teams will be missing key pieces to begin the series, but this benefits the Jets as they are a lot deeper than the Blues. Winnipeg has been the most complete team in the league all season long and they should run right through the Blues. There is an interesting storyline to follow as Hellebuyck and Binnington have already faced off against each other in a playoff like setting during the 4 Nations Faceoff. Binnington and Team Canada won that battle, but now Hellebuyck is out for revenge, and he will be an absolute wall in the crease in this series, especially since the Blues lack stardom on offense. Winnipeg will sweep St. Louis, and this will be the least entertaining series in the first round.

My Pick: to Win: Winnipeg Jets -215, Series Total Games: Under 5.5 +138, Series Exact Games: 4 Games +550

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Start:	April 18, 2025 @ 11:59 PM
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St. Louis Blues vs. Winnipeg Jets Series Predictions and Best Bets

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