NHL: Florida Panthers at Minnesota Wild - Source: Imagn — St. Louis Blues vs Florida Panthers: Game preview, predictions, and odds | December 20, 2024 - Image Source: Imagn

St. Louis Blues vs Florida Panthers: Game preview, predictions, and odds | December 20, 2024

Modified Dec 20, 2024 15:26 GMT

The St. Louis Blues are on the road to play the Florida Panthers on Friday, Dec. 20, at 7 p.m. EST.

St. Louis (15-16-1) is coming off a 3-1 loss to Tampa Bay on Thursday. Florida (20-11-2) is coming off a 6-1 win over Minnesota.

Blues vs Panthers: Head-to-head & key stats

St. Louis is 27-13-3-1 all-time against Florida
The Blues are averaging 2.5 goals per game
The Panthers are 9-5-1 at home
St. Louis is allowing 3.08 goals per game
Florida is averaging 3.57 goals per game
The Blues are 9-8-2 on the road
The Panthers are allowing 3.18 goals per game

St. Louis Blues vs Florida Panthers: Preview

St. Louis is coming off a 3-1 loss to Tampa Bay on Thursday and will play the second half of a back-to-back. The Blues are led by Jordan Kyrou who has 28 points, Robert Thomas has 24 points, Pavel Buchnevich has 22 points and Dylan Holloway has 19 points.

The Blues will start Joel Hofer who's 7-3 with a 2.72 GAA and a .907 SV%. In his career against Florida, he's 1-1 with a 2.56 GAA and a .926 SV%.

Florida, meanwhile, is coming off a 6-1 win over Minnesota and is on a two-game winning streak. The Panthers will start Sergei Bobrovsky who's 15-6-1 with a 2.88 GAA and a .892 SV%. In his career against St. Louis, he's 5-6 with a 2.45 GAA and a .910 SV%.

The Panthers are led by Sam Reinhart who has 42 points, Matthew Tkachuk has 33 points, Aleksander Barkov has 30 points and Sam Bennett has 27 points.

Blues vs Panthers: Odds & Prediction

St. Louis is a +245 underdog, while Florida is a -305 favorite, with the over/under set at 5.5 goals.

The Blues are set for the second half of a back-to-back game, which is a tough spot, especially when playing the reigning Stanley Cup champions. The Panthers offense is legit, while Bobrovsky has been solid and should be able to limit the Blues offense.

Florida is hitting its groove, as the Panthers should get a big win here.

Prediction: Panthers 4, Blues 2.