Expert NHL Game Previews, Matchups and Key Insights
The National Hockey League (NHL) has just two games on the scheduled for Friday night, with the Chicago Blackhawks and St. Louis Blues meeting at 8:00 p.m. ET on ESPN+ and Hulu, while the Seattle Kraken and Utah Mammoth square off at 9:00 p.m. ET on ESPN+.
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NHL Best Bets & Picks: Blues vs Blackhawks and Kraken vs Mammoth – Expert Game Previews
For the latest NHL Odds, including NHL Futures and NHL player props, visit RotoWire's NHL Betting page. For up-to-date NHL player news and NHL Injury Report info, head to RotoWire's NHL Lineups page. You can find more picks at Bookies.com/picks. Here are our NHL Best Bets today, featuring expert NHL picks for an action-packed slate of games.
NHL Best Bets Tonight: Expert Game Previews, Picks & Matchup Insights
Chicago Blackhawks 
at St. Louis Blues 
The Blackhawks (13-11-6) and Blues (11-14-7) at Enterprise Center in St. Louis at 8:00 p.m. ET on ESPN+ and Hulu.
Chicago returned home Wednesday night, posting a 3-0 victory over the New York Rangers in an Original Six battle behind Spencer Knight, who turned aside all 21 shots he faced. After a scoreless first period, Louis Crevier picked up a shorthanded goal to kick off the scoring early in the second period, followed by an even-strength goal by Connor Bedard at 14:27 of the second period. Tyler Bertuzzi added an insurance marker at 3:52 for the final goal.
The shutout for the Blackhawks was a bit shocking, as Chicago had been blown out 13-1 in the previous two games at Los Angeles and Anaheim to close out the four-game trip. Chicago improved to 3-2-1 in the past six games, while the Under on Wednesday as a rarity, as the Over is still 6-2 across the previous eight matchups.
These teams have met just once this season, with the Blackhawks posting an 8-3 win as heavy underdogs (+205) at Enterprise Center back on Oct. 15 as the Over (6) easily cashed. Arvid Soderblom picked up the win, stopping 23 of 26 shots, while Joel Hofer was buried for seven goals on 22 shots. He allowed four goals on 14 shots before giving way to Jordan Binnington. Hofer actually came back on and finished up, taking one for the team.
Bedard had three assists in St. Louis, while Lukas Reichel had two goals and three points, while Bertuzzi had a goal and assist, and Ilya Mikheyev also had a goal and an assist.
The Blues were trucked 7-2 by the Nashville Predators in the Music City on Thursday, as Binnington allowed six goals on 25 shots before getting yanked after two periods. Hofer finished up, stopping six of the seven shots he faced.
In back-to-back situations, the Blues are 3-2-0 in five games, getting outscored 12-11 in those games, although they also have a pair of shutout victories. The Under has a 3-2 edge in those five games on no rest.
Let's side with the Blackhawks based on their shutout win last time out, and their lopsided win in St. Louis in the first meeting. We'll also go high on the total based on the first game, as well as the fact the Blues could have heavy legs due to the back-to-back.
- Blackhawks ML (+130 at BetRivers Sportsbook)
- Over 5.5 Goals (-128 at FanDuel Sportsbook)
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Seattle Kraken 
at Utah Mammoth 
The Kraken (12-10-6) meet the Mammoth (14-15-3) at Delta Center in Salt Lake City at 9:00 p.m. ET on ESPN+.
This is the first meeting of the season between these Western Conference teams. The home team won all three meetings last season, with the underdogs cashing in two of those meetings. The Over was 2-0-1 in those three games as well.
Seattle picked up a much-needed 3-2 victory in overtime Wednesday, cooling off the Los Angeles Kings as a moderate underdog (+130) as the Under (5.5) cashed behind Joey Daccord. The goaltender settled down, stopping 24 of the 26 shots he faced to snap a personal five-start losing skid.
Utah was on the short end of a 4-3 loss to the Florida Panthers at home Wednesday, losing for a third consecutive matchup. The Mammoth is also 2-7-0 in the past nine contests, while the Over is 4-2 in the past six games.
Karel Vejmelka (12-9-2, 2.72 GAA, .895 SV%, 1 SO) is expected to get the nod in Salt Lake City, and while he allowed four goals on 36 shots against the Panthers, that's not terrible against the two-time defending champs. He still has a respectable 2.64 GAA and .916 SV% in five starts in December.
Utah hasn't had a lot of red-hot scorers, but Dylan Guenther has had four goals and six points with three power-play points in the past five games.
Looking to Seattle, Eeli Tolvanen has a goal and four points in the past four games, while Jordan Eberle has a goal and four points in the same span. Both players also have two power-play points in the four-game stretch.
We're likely going to get a lower-scoring game, perhaps of the 3-2 variety, and let's side with the Kraken, who are skating with a little extra pep after the exciting overtime win over the Kings last time out.
- Kraken ML (+158 at Caesars Sportsbook)
- Under 5.5 Goals (+100 at Bet365, Caesars and DraftKings Sportsbooks)
Don't make any bets on your favorite sports betting apps without first consulting the latest NHL odds.
Parlay Strategy and Super Parlay Picks for NHL Betting Slates
3-Leg NHL Super Parlay (+686 Caesars Sportsbook)
- Blackhawks ML at Blues and Over 5.5 - SGP (+293)
- Under 5.5 - Kraken at Mammoth (+100)
2-Leg NHL Totals Parlay (+254 at Caesars Sportsbook)
- Over 5.5 - Blackhawks at Blues (-130)
- Under 5.5 - Kraken at Mammoth (+100)
2-Leg NHL Sides Parlay (+473 at Caesars Sportsbook)
- Blackhawks ML (+122) at Blues
- Kraken ML (+158) at Mammoth
