There are two games on the NHL betting board this Sunday beginning with an afternoon clash between the Dallas Stars and St. Louis Blues.
Both of these teams come into this contest playing some inspired hockey and looking to climb the Western Conference standings now that they've gotten back close to full strength. The Blues are -160 home favorites for this matchup with the Over/Under at 6.
Here are our best free Stars vs. Blues NHL picks and predictions for Sunday, January 9, with the puck dropping at 2 p.m. ET.
Stars vs Blues odds
Odds via the Covers Line, an average comprised of odds from multiple sportsbooks.
The line opened with the Blues installed as -157 favorites and the Over/Under at 6. Early money has come in on St. Louis, shifting them slightly to -160. When these teams previously played on December 17, St. Louis was a slim +103 underdog at home but pulled off the 4-1 upset.
Use the live odds widget above to track any future line movements right until puck drop and be sure to check out the full NHL odds before betting to ensure you get the best number.
Stars vs Blues predictions
Predictions made on 1/9/2022 at 9:00 a.m. ET.
Click on each prediction to jump to the full analysis.
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Stars vs Blues game info
• Location: Enterprise Center, St. Louis, MO
• Date: Sunday, January 9, 2022
• Puck drop: 2:00 p.m. ET
• TV: NHL Network
Stars vs Blues betting preview
Injuries
Stars: Tanner Kero C (Out).
Blues: Vladimir Tarasenko (Out), Jake Walman D (Out), Scott Perunovich D (Out).
Find our latest NHL injury reports.
Stars vs Blues head-to-head record
Stars: 3-7, 19 goals for.
Blues: 7-3, 29 goals for.
Betting trend to know
The Blues are 10-1 in their last 11 home games. Find more NHL betting trends for Stars vs. Blues.
Stars vs Blues picks and predictions
Our predictions are compiled from the analysis of the spread and total and are indications of where we are leaning for this game.
Our best bet is the play that we like the most for this game, which we would actually put some of our bankroll behind.
Moneyline analysis
The Stars have won four games in a row, including back-to-back victories against Pittsburgh and Florida after taking 17 days off while COVID-19 ran through the locker room. The last time they lost was back in mid-December when they fell to the Blues in a home-and-home matchup that saw them lose both games by a score of 4-1.
Dallas is now in eighth place in the Western Conference with a point percentage of .581 while St. Louis is in fourth with a point percentage of .643.
The Blues have played very well lately, going 8-2-1 in their last 11 games and coming off a 5-1 win over the Capitals on Friday night. Ville Husso got the start in net in that contest which means that they'll start Jordan Binnington today. Binnington is having a down year going 10-7-3 with a 3.00 GAA and a save percentage of .908.
The Stars will likely turn to veteran Braden Holtby between the pipes after Jack Oetinger picked up the win against the Penguins yesterday. Holtby is 6-7-1 with a 2.59 GAA and a .919 SV% but is coming off a tough outing against the Panthers where he surrendered five goals while getting peppered with 42 shots.
The Blues were missing their leading scorer in Vladimir Tarasenko on Friday but they proved they can score without him, putting five goals past the Capitals. They rank fifth in the NHL with 3.49 goals per game while owning the third-best power-play.
The Stars have been moving the puck well lately but they rank a modest 19th in the league with 2.87 gpg, with that number dropping to an ugly 2.07 gpg on the road. That could be the deciding factor in this contest with the Stars winning just four of 14 games away from home this season. The Blues have thrived at home, going 10-1 in their previous 11 contests at Enterprise Center, and they should have the fresher legs as well with Dallas having played less than 24 hours ago.
Prediction: Blues ML (-160)
Over/Under analysis
While both of these teams have been able to find the back of the net lately, we could be in line for a lower-scoring matchup this afternoon.
While the Stars have been mediocre on the penalty kill they have been excellent in their own end at even strength. Dallas ranks fifth in the league in goals allowed per 60 minutes in 5-on-5 play (2.02) while sitting second in expected goals allowed (1.88).
We already mentioned that the Stars are among the lowest-scoring teams in the NHL when on the road and the Blues have not so coincidently been much tougher defensively at home, ranking fifth in the league with just 2.28 gpg allowed.
The Under is 11-4 in the Stars' last 15 games overall while going 6-2 in Holtby's previous eight outings. The Under has also cashed in five straight home games for the Blues. The head-to-head trends also point towards the Under with six of the last seven meetings in St. Louis going below the total.
Prediction: Under 6 (-120)
Best bet
The Stars are coming off a pair of wins against extremely tough foes but those can take a lot out of you, especially when you're now on the tail-end of a back-to-back against a Blues squad that's been absurdly good at home.
Add in the fact that the Stars have struggled on the road and that they got shelled in consecutive contests against this team less than a month ago (with St. Louis starting its third-string goalie) and the Blues should win convincingly. We're not quite confident enough to back the home side on the puckline but we like them to win in regulation at close to even money.
Pick: Blues 3-way ML (-105)
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