Rangers vs. Blues prediction: NHL picks, odds, bets for Saturday
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As the dust settles on another trade deadline, the Rangers can pivot to the playoff push, starting with a Saturday home date against the Blues after four days of rest.
The goal was to add scoring punch, but with the Hurricanes having outbid New York for Jake Guentzel, the question became, what would be worth having Drury dig deep into his pockets?
Subsequently, the answer was nothing as some roster reinforcement was added instead.
So unless some 11th hour development is made with some of the youth in the Rangers’ bottom-six forward group, this is the lineup that will either sink or swim this spring.
It’s a product that has showcased dominance with its special teams all season, including a 25.1 percent success rate on the power play.
That and heroic goaltending have been the bread and butter on Broadway, as Igor Shesterkin has reclaimed his confidence with a 2.00 goals against average since the start of February.
A common criticism of the Rangers is their inconsistencies at five-on-five play, which has seen some trending improvement.
The Rangers’ exhausting 4-2 loss to the five-on-five-bullying Panthers on Monday had some flashes of resilience at even strength — especially in the first period.
Not to praise morale victories, but going the distance with Florida is about as close to a playoff-like atmosphere as you are going to get.
The same cannot be said for the Blues, who are one of the weakest five-on-five challenges.
St. Louis has been scraping for offense all season with Robert Thomas having been the only good headline, leading the club with 69 points.
Betting on the NHL?
The Rangers carry four players with 50-plus points — all of whom should benefit from the 32.1 shots the Blues allow along with a minus-18 goal differential and the sixth-most high-danger scoring chances against.
New York is plus-19 at MSG this season along with a 21-8-0 record.
The Blueshirts’ dress rehearsal for the playoff begins Saturday against a St. Louis team that is idly coasting through the remainder of its season.
The play: Rangers -1.5 goals (+125, FanDuel).
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