Betting news, trends, odds and predictions from various handicappers and websites for Sunday 5/19/19
St. Louis Blues vs. San Jose Sharks Preview and Predictions 05-19-2019 in NHL
The San Jose Sharks and St. Louis Blues are comfortable with their Western Conference final shifting back to SAP Center, as the former is 7-3 in front of their own fans while the latter has made itself at home on the road with a 6-2 mark. The Sharks bid to win Game 5 of their third straight series on Sunday against the Blues, who split the first two games in San Jose.
"We're a confident group. We're a good road team and it's getting to our game early," St. Louis center Ryan O'Reilly told reporters after Friday's 2-1 win. "... We tied the series. It's a best-of-3 now and we have to start preparing for the next one." The Blues can thank Jordan Binnington for paving the way, as the 25-year-old made 29 saves to set a franchise record with his 10th postseason victory this year and became the 10th rookie goaltender to record double-digit wins in a single playoff run in league history. Tomas Hertl scored a power-play goal in the third period for his first point of the series and second on the road, as opposed to the 13 points (eight goals, five assists) he's posted at home. "We're right where I expected we would be, in a good spot going home, and we've got to get the job done," Sharks coach Peter DeBoer told reporters.
TV: 3 p.m. ET, NBC, CBC, Sportsnet, TVA
ABOUT THE BLUES: St. Louis has answered an 0-for-18 stretch on the power play by scoring twice in five opportunities with the man advantage the past two games. Tyler Bozak scored on the power play in the first period on Friday to boost his point total to four (two goals, two assists) in the past five games. "We wanted to have a really good start, and we sure did with (Ivan Barbashev's) goal and added to it with (Bozak's)," Blues forward David Perron told reporters. "It was a really good first period. We back off after that, but we got the win and that's what matters."
ABOUT THE SHARKS: With the hand pass controversy now in the rearview mirror, the talk swirling around the health of two-time Norris Trophy recipient Erik Karlsson has once again returned to the forefront. Karlsson, who missed 29 games in the regular season due to a groin issue, was a passenger on the bench for a seven-minute stretch in the latter half of the third period and was seen testing his skating during a stoppage in play. "I don't have anything for you there," DeBoer said of the health of the 28-year-old Karlsson, who notched his fourth point of the series by setting up Hertl's goal.
OVERTIME
1. St. Louis RW Vladimir Tarasenko has recorded at least a point in all four games of this series after being held off the scoresheet in seven of the previous nine contests.
2. San Jose D Brent Burns has 13 points (four goals, nine assists) in 10 home contests in the playoffs.
3. Blues D Vince Dunn will sit out his second straight game with an upper-body injury.
PREDICTION: Sharks 3, Blues 1
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SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) The San Jose Sharks have been at their best this postseason when they had little margin for error.
That's probably why they feel comfortable heading home for Game 5 of the Western Conference final against the Blues after a lackluster start led to a Game 4 loss in St. Louis.
Having squandered a series lead for the second time in this matchup, the Sharks know a loss Sunday could mean they won't get to play on home ice again this postseason.
''It's a great spot to be in,'' coach Peter DeBoer said Saturday. ''This is supposed to be hard. What happened with Boston on the other side, that usually doesn't happen. Usually these are all six, seven hard-fought games, hard-fought series. We're right where I expected we would be, in a good spot going home, and we've got to get the job done.''
After alternating wins in the first four games, the Sharks and Blues now have a best-of-three to decide who plays the Bruins in the Stanley Cup Final. Boston swept Carolina in the East and will have 10 days off before the start of the next round May 27.
Nothing has come easy for San Jose or St. Louis. The Blues went six games in the opening round against Winnipeg before needing double overtime in Game 7 of the second round against Dallas to make the conference final.
The Sharks, meanwhile, have endured two seven-game series - Vegas and Colorado. That's happened in part because they have appeared to let up when leading a series before responding with greater desperation.
San Jose is 0-6 this postseason when leading a series. But it is 10-2 when tied or trailing, including four wins in elimination games sparked by a comeback from 3-1 down in the opening round to the Golden Knights.
''There's a lot of emotion in the playoffs,'' Sharks captain Joe Pavelski said. ''We're in the conference finals. We've had overtime wins, we've had game sevens. We've had emotional games for sure. You just lace them back up next game and you compete.''
The Blues got a goal from Ivan Barbashev 35 seconds into Game 4 and added another late in the first period before hanging on for the 2-1 win Friday.
It was an impressive rebound from a crushing Game 3 loss when the Blues allowed the tying goal with 1:01 left in regulation and then the winner in overtime after the officials failed to see a hand pass by San Jose that set up Erik Karlsson's goal.
''We're in a good spot,'' coach Craig Berube said. ''So just pushing and keep fighting and be aggressive. Just be aggressive as a team and be confident as a team. That's our message. You're going to have ups and downs in the playoffs and you have to move on from it. You really do. As much as we had to move on from that Game 3 loss we have to move on from last night's win.''
The Sharks need to come out in Game 5 with the kind of play they showed in the final two periods Friday. They controlled the puck and hemmed the Blues into the defensive end for long stretches.
The only problem was St. Louis rookie goalie Jordan Binnington, who stopped all 11 shots in the second period and then nine of 10 in the third. He allowed only a power-play goal to Tomas Hertl on the way to his franchise-record 10th win this postseason.
Binnington improved to 11-2 this season in games following a loss.
''As soon as people start doubting him, he pulls another sick performance,'' Blues forward David Perron said.
Another big concern for the Sharks is the health of Karlsson, who played only one shift in the final 9:24 after an apparent injury. Karlsson missed 27 of the final 33 games in the regular season with groin injuries that have hampered him in the playoffs.
He's had big moments, with 14 assists and two goals, including the disputed overtime winner in Game 3 against the Blues. But he also seems to labor at times, as he did in the third period before taking an extended break when the Sharks were fighting for the tying goal.
He returned for the final 1:55 game with the goalie pulled but mostly stayed positioned at the point for passes and shots, his skating limited. DeBoer offered no update Saturday on Karlsson's condition.
The Blues will again be without defenseman Vince Dunn, who took a puck to the face in Game 3.
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NHL
Dunkel
Sunday, May 19
St. Louis @ San Jose
Game 21-22
May 19, 2019 @ 3:00 pm
Dunkel Rating:
St. Louis
11.406
San Jose
12.951
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
San Jose
by 1 1/2
6
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
San Jose
-130
5 1/2
Dunkel Pick:
San Jose
(-130); Over
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NHL
Long Sheet
Sunday, May 19
ST LOUIS (55-33-0-11, 121 pts.) at SAN JOSE (56-34-0-10, 122 pts.) - 5/19/2019, 3:00 PM
Top Trends for this game.
SAN JOSE is 19-6 ATS (+10.5 Units) after scoring 1 goal or less in their previous game over the last 2 seasons.
ST LOUIS is 40-22 ATS (+9.5 Units) second half of the season this season.
ST LOUIS is 34-23 ATS (+10.0 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record this season.
ST LOUIS is 22-11 ATS (+10.1 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season this season.
Head-to-Head Series History
ST LOUIS is 7-6 (+1.0 Units) against the spread versus SAN JOSE over the last 3 seasons
ST LOUIS is 7-6-0 straight up against SAN JOSE over the last 3 seasons
7 of 10 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Under=+3.4 Units)
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NHL
Sunday, May 19
Trend Report
St. Louis Blues
St. Louis is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games
St. Louis is 4-2 SU in its last 6 games
St. Louis is 6-2 ATS in its last 8 games on the road
St. Louis is 6-2 SU in its last 8 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 4 of St. Louis's last 5 games on the road
St. Louis is 3-7 ATS in its last 10 games when playing San Jose
St. Louis is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games when playing San Jose
The total has gone UNDER in 7 of St. Louis's last 10 games when playing San Jose
St. Louis is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games when playing on the road against San Jose
San Jose Sharks
San Jose is 4-2 ATS in its last 6 games
The total has gone OVER in 4 of San Jose's last 6 games
San Jose is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games at home
San Jose is 6-2 SU in its last 8 games at home
The total has gone OVER in 12 of San Jose's last 14 games at home
San Jose is 7-3 ATS in its last 10 games when playing St. Louis
San Jose is 4-2 SU in its last 6 games when playing St. Louis
The total has gone UNDER in 7 of San Jose's last 10 games when playing St. Louis
San Jose is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against St. Louis
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