Buffalo Sabres at St. Louis Blues NHL Picks & Predictions 12/27/2018

Thursday, December 27, 2018

Enterprise Center

Get todays NHL hockey odds on this game.

The Buffalo Sabres travel to Enterprise Center to play the St. Louis Blues on Thursday, December 27, 2018. The opening line for this game has the Sabres at -105 and the Blues at -143.

Buffalo has a record of 21-11-5 this season. They are 3rd in the Atlantic Division. They've scored 111 goals and given up 105 goals for a point differential of +6. For the season they have an ATS record of 21-16-0 and an over/under record of 19-17-0. St. Louis is 14-16-4 this season. They are 6th in the Central Division. They have scored 96 goals and surrendered 114 for a goal differential of -18. Their record against the spread is 14-20-0 while their over/under record is 16-16-0.

Valuable Buffalo Sabres Betting Trends

The Buffalo Sabres are 21-16-0 straight up this year

The Buffalo Sabres are 19-17-0 against the over/under this season

Important St. Louis Blues Betting Trends

The St. Louis Blues are 14-20-0 straight up this year

The St. Louis Blues are 16-16-0 against the over/under this season

Key Buffalo Sabres Injuries

12/23/18 RW Jason Pominville Undisclosed is questionable Thursday vs St. Louis
12/23/18 D Nathan Beaulieu Undisclosed is questionable Thursday vs St. Louis
12/07/18 D Casey Nelson Upper Body is out indefinitely
10/04/18 C Scott Wilson Leg is out indefinitely

Key St. Louis Blues Injuries

12/14/18 D Alex Pietrangelo Hand IR (12/14)
11/19/18 D Carl Gunnarsson Upper Body is out indefinitely
10/04/18 LW Erik Foley Concussion is out indefinitely

Player Spotlight

Jack Eichel has accumulated 48 total points this season for the Sabres. He has 14 goals this year with 158 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 9%. He has a total of 34 assists on the season and averages 20.3 minutes played per game. Jeff Skinner averages 18.2 minutes of ice time per game this year. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 23% by scoring 26 goals on 112 shots. He has 12 assists, giving him a total of 38 points on the season. Carter Hutton has 13 wins and 10 losses this season in net for the Sabres. He has 763 shots against him and he's given up 63 goals. He's made 700 saves for a save percentage of 92%.

Player Spotlight

Vladimir Tarasenko has scored 22 total points this year for the Blues. He has 11 goals this season with 125 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 9%. He has a total of 11 assists on the season and averages 18.4 minutes played per game. Ryan O'Reilly averages 20.5 minutes of ice time per game. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 14% by scoring 13 goals on 90 shots. He has 19 assists, giving him a total of 32 points on the season. Jake Allen has 12 wins and 10 losses this year in goal for the Blues. He has 781 shots against him and he's surrendered 78 goals. He's made 703 saves for a save percentage of 90%.

Useful Team Statistics

The Sabres have 47 total points this season, which ranks them 4th in the NHL. They are 15th in the league in goals scored with 111 while they've given up 105 goals, ranking them 20th overall. They have had 118 power play opportunities and have scored 22 goals on those chances for a percentage of 19%. That is 18th in the NHL. The Sabres have allowed 110 power play opportunities and have given up 18 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 84%, putting them 5th in the league when short-handed. They average 32 shots per game and as a team shoot 9.37% for the season. They allow 33 shots to their opposition per contest and have a team save percentage of 92%. That puts them 5th in the league in stopping the puck.

Useful Team Statistics

The Blues are 28th in the NHL with a total of 32 points this year. They have 23 power play goals on 106 opportunities for a percentage of 22%. That ranks them 12th in the league as a power play unit. They've allowed 118 power play opportunities and have given up 21 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 82%. That is 10th in the NHL. As a team, the Blues are 27th in the league with 96 goals scored while they've given up 114 goals, which is 12th overall. They average 30 shots per contest and have a team shooting percentage of 9.39%. As a team they give up 31 shots per game and have a save percentage of 89%. That is 27th in the NHL.

Advanced Statistics

Buffalo is 20th in the NHL in Corsi percentage with 48.9%, as they've attempted 2,058 shots on net at full strength while they've given up 2,148 shots on net in the same situations. Their Fenwick percentage is 49.2% as they have 1,613 attempts while they have given up 1,664 shots on the defensive end. That ranks them 19th in the league. The Sabres start possessions in the offensive zone 48.9% of the time, which is 20th in the league, while their defensive zone percentage is at 51.1% for the season. That is 12th overall in the NHL. They have 1,086 face-off wins compared to 1,183 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 47.9%. That ranks them 26th in the league. On defense Buffalo has 668 hits and they have blocked 484 shots from the opposition, putting them 26th overall.

Advanced Statistics

The Blues are 25th in the league in starting possessions in the offensive zone, doing so 48.1% of the time. Their defensive zone percentage is at 51.9% for the season, which is 6th in the NHL. They have 1,086 face-off wins compared to 995 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 52.2%. That is 3rd in the league. On defense St. Louis has 695 hits and they have blocked 528 shots from the opposition, which is 14th in the league. St. Louis is 24th in the NHL in Corsi percentage with 48.4% as they've attempted 1,829 shots on net at full strength while they've given up 1,951 shots on net in the same situations. Their Fenwick percentage of 49% ranks 21st as they have 1,368 attempts while they have given up 1,423 shots on the defensive end.

Who will win tonight's Sabres/Blues NHL game against the spread?

Tony's Pick: Take St. Louis -143

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