Free NHL Picks Today: St. Louis Blues vs Florida Panthers 2/14/23

The Florida Panthers (-120) head to take on the St. Louis Blues (+100) at Enterprise Center on Tuesday. The total is 6.5 (O: -120, U: +100)Florida (27-23-6) is playing on back-to-back days after earning a 2-1 shootout win over the Wild yesterday.

The Panthers committed six penalties in the game, though they held Minnesota without a power play goal. Eetu Luostarinen was the only player to find the net for the Panthers. Sergei Bobrovsky saved an impressive 27 of 28 shots (.964%) in the win.

St. Louis (24-25-3) beat the Coyotes 6-5 (OT) on Saturday. Calle Rosen scored twice to lead the Blues. Pavel Buchnevich had three assists to lead the team in scoring. Jordan Binnington surrendered five goals on 28 shots (.821%).

HEAD TO HEAD

The Blues won the first meeting between the teams this season, a 5-4 (OT) victory in November. Five players had two points for St. Louis. Sam Reinhart and Gustav Forsling each had two points (0G 2A) to lead Florida. Thomas Greiss got the win despite allowing four goals on 37 shots (.891%).

FACING OFF

Florida is averaging 3.43 goals per game for the season, seventh in the NHL, and they are taking on a Blues team that is allowing 3.63 goals a game (27th).

Meanwhile, St. Louis has found the net 3.06 times a game on average, 18th in the league, and the Panthers are allowing opponents to score 3.39 goals per game (23rd).

Florida averages more shots a game (35.8) than any other team in the league, though the team’s 9.7% shooting percentage ranks 21st. St. Louis’ average of 28.9 attempts ranks 29th.

Don’t be surprised to see a few power play opportunities for the Blues, as the Panthers are averaging 4.86 penalties per game, most in the NHL.

The visitors’ 12.30 penalty minutes a game ranks second-highest. The home team has been penalized 3.04 times a game (2nd-fewest in the league) for an average of 6.94 minutes (2nd-fewest).

The Blues’ 22.15% power play percentage ranks 13th in the league, while the Panthers are 16th with a conversion rate of 21.83%. In terms of defending power plays, Florida has the league’s 25th-ranked PK% at 75.73%, while St. Louis is 26th at 75.38%.

TOP PERFORMERS:

With 73 points this season, fourth-most in the NHL, Matthew Tkachuk is the top skater for the Panthers. He is among the league leaders with 46 assists (5th) and has added 27 goals of his own. In the net, Spencer Knight (9-7-3) is Florida’s top goaltender by goals against average. He has a 3.06 GAA and a .906% save percentage.

Bobrovsky (14-14-2) leads the Panthers in games played in goal. He has a GAA of 3.13 and a save percentage of .903%. Jordan Kyrou leads the Blues in scoring with 49 points.

He has 23 goals and 26 assists. Greiss (5-7-0) has the best goals against average for St. Louis at 3.29. He has a save percentage of .906%. Binnington (19-18-3) has played the most games in net for the Blues this season. He has a 3.31 GAA and a .890% save percentage.

HOME AND AWAY

Florida is 12-15-3 away from home this season. St. Louis is 11-12-2 at home this season. Meanwhile, the Panthers are 2-6 without a day off and 1-5 playing with a rest disadvantage. The Blues are 2-2 with a rest advantage.