St. Louis Blues vs San Jose Sharks: Predictions, Odds and Roster Notes

Where: SAP Center at San Jose – San Jose, CA.

When: Saturday, March 9, 4PM EST

How (TV/Radio): NBC Sports-Cali, Fox Sports Midwest, NHL | KMOX, KUFX

St. Louis Blues (Away)

Head Coach: Craig Berube {All-Time 102-74-31}

Both teams are heading into this game with significant injuries and yet are still finding a way to win. At the time of writing, the Blues have gone 6-3-1 in their last ten games and that’s without key players Brayden Schenn, Carl Gunnarsson, and David Perron in their lineup.

Statistically, most of the offensive numbers favor the San Jose Sharks. The St. Louis Blues will have to heavily rely on their possession game – winning the faceoffs and hanging on to that puck. The Blues are ranked sixth in the league in faceoff percentage. Their opponents are ranked tenth.

Defensively, these teams go back and forth. The key advantages for the Blues start with goaltending. Jordan Binnington has been phenomenal for the club this season and the Blues rank eighth in the league for fewest goals allowed – allowing, on average, 2.77 or less per game. The Sharks rank 18th in the same stat. St. Louis also take fewer penalties per game, ranking ninth in the league. San Jose is in the basement of the league when it comes to taking penalties, averaging more than nine minutes per game.

Jordan Binnington is expected to continue his strong play in net when the Blues play the Sharks. Binnington is 15-3-1 on the season with a goals against average of 1.68 and a .933 save percentage. He has five shutouts.

San Jose Sharks (Home)

Head Coach: Peter DeBoer {All-Time 393-305-108 SJ

Just like their opponents, the Sharks have gone 6-3-1 in their last ten games at the time of writing despite the fact that they’ve been playing without superstars Evander Kane and Erik Karlsson.

Still, they have some notable advantages over the St. Louis Blues. San Jose ranks third in the league in both shots and goals scored. The Blues rank 19th and 16th respectively. Even without Evander Kane, San Jose manages to take a plethora of shots and many find the back of the net. The Sharks are also ranked sixth in the league for shooting percentage.

Defensively, the Sharks play well. It is unknown is Erik Karlsson will be healthy enough to play in this game, but the Sharks are still strong without him. They rank second in the league when it comes to shots allowed. They also have the seventh-ranked penalty kill. The Sharks just have to find a way to stay out of the penalty box against St. Louis.

For the Sharks, goaltender Martin Jones is expected to start. Jones has a season record of 31-13-5. His goals against average is 2.93 and his save percentage is .897. He has two shutouts on the year.

These two teams last played each other on November 17, 2018. The Sharks shutout the Blues with a final score of 4-0.

What’s At Stake?

Both teams are currently seeded within their respective divisions’ playoff spots. St. Louis could use the two points more than San Jose as they are third in the Central division and only three points ahead of the Dallas Stars who currently sit in the first wildcard spot.

The San Jose Sharks are second in the Pacific division and only three points back of the first-place (second-place in the league) Calgary Flames. They are 15 points ahead of the first wildcard spot and could still easily win their division.

Questions to answer

Will St. Louis goaltender Jordan Binnington continue to shine? Can the Sharks offense sneak anything past him?

Will San Jose’s higher ranking powerplay and penalty kill be the ultimate factor in this game? Can St. Louis get around their special teams?

Will Evander Kane and Erik Karlsson, both listed as day-to-day, be cleared to play this Saturday?

St. Louis Blues Injury Report

F Brayden Schenn – IR (upper-body)

D Carl Gunnarsson – IR (upper-body)

F David Perron – IR (upper-body)

F Erik Foley – IR (concussion)

San Jose Sharks Injury Report

F Evander Kane – day-to-day (mid-body)

D Erik Karlsson – day-to-day (groin)

St. Louis Blues at San Jose Sharks Predictions and Odds

The San Jose Sharks (-145) are the favourites over the St. Louis Blues (+145).