-bm.jpg "Blues-at-Penguins-(NBCSN)-bm")
The Pittsburgh Penguins will raise their Stanley Cup banner on Wednesday night, as they host the St. Louis Blues in the 2017-2018 season opener for both teams. The Penguins are coming off yet another championship season, as they won their fifth title and second straight. They will be favored at home in this game on NBCSN, as they take on a St. Louis Blues team coming off a 99-point season. These teams met twice a year ago with the road team winning each time.
At 8 p.m. ET, tune into NBCSN for live television coverage of this NHL game on Wednesday, October 4, 2017 at PPG Paints Arena.
We'll have NHL odds at BookMaker.eu available for this and every game on the NHL Wednesday schedule.
Odds Analysis
There is no question the Penguins will be favored to win their home opener. They are coming off their second straight Stanley Cup championship and they were great at home a year ago, going 31-6-4.
The Blues were a decent road team last season, going 22-17-2. They went under the total 21 times, over 17 times, with three pushes on the road. St. Louis has been a good team against the Eastern Conference, winning 8 of their last 10.
The Penguins were a very good team to bet over the total at home last season, with 26 games going over, 11 going under, with four pushes.
St. Louis went under in five of their last six road games last season but the Penguins went over in three of their last five at home. The Under is 5-1-3 in the last 9 meetings in Pittsburgh.
Special Teams
The Blues were a solid team on the power play a year ago, as they were 8th in the league at 21.3%. St. Louis scored 2.8 goals per game, which was 12th in the NHL. They were very good in penalty killing at 84.8%, good for 3rd in the league. They were 13th in the league in goals allowed at 2.6 per contest.
The Penguins were excellent on the power play a year ago, at 23.3%, good for 3rd in the league. Pittsburgh led the league in goals scored at 3.4 per contest. They were just 20th in penalty killing at 79.8%. They were 17th in the league in goals allowed at 2.8 per contest.
Injury Report
The Blues suffered a major injury before the season began, as center Robby Fabbri was lost for the season. St. Louis general manager Doug Armstrong said the team is looking at possible replacements including the ageless Jaromir Jagr but nothing has been decided. “I would say that in a 31-team league, potential offensive players are usually on a team right now,” Armstrong said to the local media. “So it’s going to have to be a trade of a player to get that. But I think we’re gonna have to score by committee.”
St. Louis not only is without Fabbri, but they are without Patrik Berglund, Zach Stanford and Alexander Steen. That is four players expected to be among their top 12 forwards. “Losing Robby’s offense, losing Berglund’s offense for the first part of the year, it’s something we’re gonna have to deal with and overcome,” Armstrong said. “We’re gonna have to overcome this.”
The Penguins have just one injury of note, as Patric Hornqvist is listed as questionable for Wednesday with a hand injury.
Free NHL Picks
The Blues were a good road team a year ago and they have had some success in this series but I think they have too many injuries to win this game on the road against a superior Pittsburgh team. I will lay the price and take the Penguins. I also think St. Louis will struggle to do anything offensively and both of the meetings between the teams last season were low scoring, so I will take the game under the total.
NHL Odds: Penguins 3, Blues 1
BookMaker offers play-by-play betting odds for live sporting events every day! The user-friendly wagering interface on your smartphone provides an easy way to place bets on the go. Mobile betting lines are updated by the minute, so click here to start gambling on thrilling live action at BookMaker Sportsbook!
