Boston vs St Louis: The Blues can't win in their champion city

On April 13, 2022 the American state of Massachusetts will host another NHL regular season game where local Boston will battle St. Louis.

For Boston, the current regular season has been surprisingly difficult. We all got used to the fact that the Bruins made playoffs without much trouble and ended up among the league leaders, but now they have big problems and a couple of months ago they risked to miss the cup battles. Fortunately, Bruce Cassidy's experienced squad was able to pull themselves together in time to avoid an embarrassment. In their last 24 meetings, the Black and Yellow have won 18 games and six defeats and have made significant strides forward. Boston now sit in sixth place in the Eastern Conference standings, having secured a playoff spot.

St. Louis have a very strong regular season. From the beginning of the season the Blues began to show decent results and for a long time they were among the leaders of the league, but in March, they suddenly suffered a major setback. Craig Berube's men suffered nine defeats and three wins in 12 games, worsening their position but not prolonging their losing streak. In their last eight games, the Blues never failed to score, winning seven times and losing once to Edmonton in overtime, 5-6. The Blues were able to move up to fourth place in the Western Conference standings.

• Boston have won six of their last seven home games;
• St. Louis have not lost in five consecutive games;
• There are no players from Boston and St. Louis in the top 25 scorers of the season.

Boston and St. Louis approach the encounter in good shape. Both teams have experienced a string of defeats, but since then they've made a good run and are well on their way to the playoffs. Nevertheless, the favorites to win this game are the Bruins, who have won six of their last seven meetings at home, while the Blues have only been successful four times in their previous nine away encounters. As a result, we'd have to bet on Boston to win for 2.21.

Don't expect any solid goaltending from this upcoming encounter. Both teams now continue to battle for the highest seed for the cup battles, so they'll put off the glaring and spectacular hockey until better times, and in a head-to-head encounter they'll try to pick up the much-needed two points. Moreover, for both Boston and St. Louis, a head-to-head encounter is a good way to play a playoff-level game, where the defense will very likely be stronger than the offense, so Total Under 5.5 pucks for 2.12 might be a good option.

Charlie McAvoy is a key defenseman for Boston in recent years. He is in his sixth season for the Bruins with the current regular season being the best of his career. In 69 games, he has already scored 52 points (8 goals + 44 assists), 20 points more than his personal best. What's more, the 24-year-old is now in top form, notching 12 assists in his last eight games. If that's the case, you might want to take a closer look at Charlie McAvoy's Total Over 0.5-point for 1.71.

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