Many expected that the St. Louis Blues and Chicago Blackhawks would meet in the playoffs in what would be a fascinating showdown. No one predicted that matchup would occur in the first round. <\/p>\n
Odds<\/b>
\nSeries: Blues -115, Chicago -105<\/strong>
\nConference: St. Louis +275, Chicago +350<\/strong>
\nStanley Cup: St. Louis +600, Chicago +800<\/strong>
\n [dfads params=’groups=63740&limit=1&return_javascript=0′]<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\nTwo strong candidates to win the Stanley Cup, the Blue and Blackhawks were surpassed by the Colorado Avalanche down the stretch, making this just the second time teams with at least 107 points are meeting in the opening round.<\/p>\n
The Blues appeared poised for a run at the Presidents\u2019 Trophy before losing their final six regular season games, while the Blackhawks dropped their final two regular season games.<\/p>\n
Forwards<\/h3>\n
Ken Hitchcock likes to roll all four lines, and that\u2019s led to plenty of success for the Blues. The group is headlined by captain David Backes, and fellow forwards Alexander Steen and T.J. Oshie, each of whome recorded career highs in goals, assists, and points this season.<\/p>\n
For the Blackhawks, it was another year of replacing stars that have moved on, with Dave Bolland and Michael Frolik heading north of the border. Even still, it\u2019s the team\u2019s top-end talent that has carried it to success in recent years.<\/p>\n
\n*CLICK HERE* GRAB Razor Ray’s NHL Hockey Picks for 2014 GAMBLING season!<\/strong><\/a><\/h3>\n<\/blockquote>\n
Patrick Sharp led the team in scoring with 34, while Marian Hossa notched his first 30-goal season as a Blackhawks. Head coach Joel Quenneville announced on Monday that top forwards Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane will return from injury and be on the ice for Game 1.<\/p>\n
Defensemen<\/h3>\n
The Blues\u2019 top defense pairing of Alex Pietrangelo and Jay Bouwmeester not only headlined a solid Blues defensive corps, but they were key contributors to Team Canada\u2019s gold medal run at the Sochi Olympics.
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\nBeyond that top pair, Kevin Shattenkirk is coming off a career year in assists and points, while Barrett Jackman has been a steady force in the team\u2019s zone for the better part of a decade.<\/p>\nThere has been plenty of transition on the Blackhawks\u2019 blue line as well, but the constant is still the team\u2019s top pairing of Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook. Keith set career highs in points and assists this season.<\/p>\n
Goaltenders<\/h3>\n
It wasn\u2019t ever on anyone\u2019s mind that the Blues needed to improve on the effective duo of Jaroslav Halak and Brian Elliott between the pipes, but that\u2019s exactly what they did by bringing in veteran Ryan Miller from the Sabres. Miller has helped the Sabres to a pair of Eastern Conference Final appearances.<\/p>\n
Corey Crawford will be the guy between the pipes for the Blackhawks after helping the team to a Stanley Cup title a year ago. He started 27 of the team\u2019s first 33 games before missing a big chunk of the season due to injury. That could be a blessing in disguise as he should be fresher than if he had kept up that frenetic pace.<\/p>\n
NHL Freee Prediction<\/h3>\n
Down the stretch and in their playoff series loss to the Kings a year ago, the Blues had trouble scoring the puck. That can\u2019t be the case in this series against the explosive Blackhawks.\u00a0 The Blackhawks took some time to get back to the Stanley Cup Final after winning it in 2010, but this year\u2019s club appears poised for another strong run.<\/p>\n
Series prediction: Blackhawks win 4-2<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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