Free NHL Picks Today: New York Islanders vs St. Louis Blues 12/6/22

The New York Islanders (-165) welcome the St. Louis Blues (+140), who will be hoping to end their losing run, at UBS Arena on Tuesday. The total is 6 (O: +100, U: -120)St. Louis (11-14-0) is playing on back-to-back days after suffering a high-scoring 6-4 loss against the Rangers yesterday, their fourth defeat in a row.

The Blues committed only two penalties in the game, yet still conceded a power play goal. Four players found the net for the Blues. Jordan Kyrou scored and provided an assist to lead the team in scoring. Jordan Binnington only had 18 saves on 24 shots against (.750%) in the loss.

New York (16-10-0) beat the Blackhawks 3-0 on Sunday. Matt Martin, Zach Parise, and Brock Nelson scored one apiece for the Islanders. Semyon Varlamov had a dominant performance with 21 saves to record his first shutout of the season.

HEAD TO HEAD

The Islanders won the first meeting between the teams this season, a 5-2 victory in November. Nelson (1G 1A), Anders Lee (1G 1A), and Noah Dobson (0G 2A) each had two points to lead New York. Vladimir Tarasenko led St. Louis with two points (1G 1A). Ilya Sorokin got the win, saving 32 of 34 shots (.941%).

FACING OFF

St. Louis is averaging 2.88 goals per game for the season, 23rd in the NHL, and they are taking on an Islanders team that is allowing only 2.54 goals a game (3rd). Meanwhile, New York has found the net 3.15 times a game on average, 16th in the league, and the Blues are allowing opponents to score 3.84 goals per game (30th).

The Blues’ 23.53% power play percentage ranks 14th in the league, while the Islanders are 15th with a conversion rate of 23.08%. New York has been more successful at penalty killing, boasting the league’s fifth-highest PK% at 81.71%. St. Louis ranks 32nd at 65.45%.

TOP PERFORMERS:

Robert Thomas (22 points), Kyrou (21), and Pavel Buchnevich (20) have been the top skaters this season for the Blues. Buchnevich has also been a top performer for St. Louis, scoring nine and assisting 11. In the net, Binnington (9-10-0) is St. Louis’ top goaltender. He has a 3.27 GAA and a .895% save percentage.

Mathew Barzal and Nelson lead the Islanders in scoring with 27 and 25 points, respectively. Barzal has three goals and 24 assists (5th), while Nelson has 12 goals and 13 assists. Sorokin (10-7-0) has the best goals against average for New York at 2.17, third-best in the league. He has a save percentage of .932%, second-best.

HOME AND AWAY

St. Louis is 6-8-0 away from Enterprise Center this season. New York is 9-4-0 at UBS Arena this season. Meanwhile, the Blues are 2-2 without a day off and 2-2 playing with a rest disadvantage. The Islanders are 2-2 with a rest advantage.