Blues vs Predators

Juuse Saros has the Predators trending back in the right direction, with Nashville riding a mini surge (five wins in its last seven and a confidence-boosting shootout win over Colorado) while St. Louis comes in off a 5-2 loss to Boston that snapped a short winning run, so current momentum leans to the home side. The Blues are also banged up: Jordan Kyrou, Nick Bjugstad, Alexey Toropchenko, Nathan Walker and Jimmy Snuggerud are all on injured reserve or sidelined, forcing Robby Fabbri straight into the lineup and thinning an already light offense, whereas Nashville’s core group of Ryan O’Reilly, Steven Stamkos, Filip Forsberg, Jonathan Marchessault and Roman Josi is intact on the active roster. Robert Thomas has historically carved up the Predators (30 points in 23 career games and an eight-game point streak against them), and St. Louis did sweep the series last season, but that edge is tempered by the Blues’ current depth issues and Nashville’s upgraded lineup plus Saros’ ability to steal close games. With the Predators a modest favorite at -120 and owning home-ice where they’ve been roughly league-average compared to St. Louis’ similarly middling road mark, I’m backing Nashville on the moneyline and grading Predators -120 as a B: a solid play with decent win probability and a straightforward, albeit not huge, return of 0.83 units profit per unit staked. Odds and availability are subject to change. This bet was made at 11/12/2025 09:47am

Given how these teams are playing right now, I lean slightly to the under 6 at -110, even though Nashville’s recent upswing suggests some offensive pop: over their last 10, Predators games have averaged about 6.1 total goals while Blues games are closer to 4.8, and season-long, each club’s goals for and against per game land right around the 6-goal mark that oddsmakers have posted. The first variable that tips this toward the under is injuries: St. Louis is missing multiple forwards including Kyrou and Bjugstad plus several depth wingers, removing speed and finishing from a lineup that already averages just 2.55 goals per game, while Nashville’s injury list is limited to depth pieces. Historically, the Blues’ power play has hurt the Preds (six power-play goals in the last seven meetings, with Robert Thomas and Dylan Holloway combining for 16 points in last year’s series), but Nashville’s goaltending with Saros plus St. Louis’ improved defensive structure of late suggests many of those advantages may translate into zone time more than high totals. With both teams still shy of the 41-game halfway mark, this isn’t a full-on playoff-style clampdown yet, but the combination of a short-handed Blues forward group, two capable starting goalies and a key number at 6 makes Under 6 (-110) a B- play: reasonably attractive at a standard 0.91-unit profit per unit if it hits, but with push risk and late empty-net chaos capping the confidence. Odds and availability are subject to change. This bet was made at 11/12/2025 09:47am

For the puckline, the way these teams match up points me toward St. Louis +1.5 at -260, but the price keeps it in C+ territory despite a strong chance it stays inside a goal. Nashville has the slight moneyline edge and better recent form, yet the Blues have taken nine of the last 15 in the series and swept all four meetings last season, often leaning on Robert Thomas’ production and a power play that has consistently converted against the Predators, which supports the idea of another tight contest rather than a blowout. St. Louis’ injury list (Kyrou, Bjugstad and multiple depth wingers out) does raise the risk of a multi-goal loss if the top six gets bottled up, but Jordan Binnington and Joel Hofer have generally kept games respectable, and Nashville’s own profile—middling 2.62 goals per game, reliance on Saros to bail them out, and a penalty-prone style—tends to generate one-goal results more than routine multi-goal wins. With Nashville likely to edge the game but the historical and stylistic factors favoring a close margin, Blues +1.5 (-260) grades as a C+: high likelihood of cashing but limited monetary value given the heavy juice, returning only 0.38 units per unit risked and better suited for parlays or risk-averse bettors than as a standalone anchor. Odds and availability are subject to change. This bet was made at 11/12/2025 09:47am