NHL Betting: Blues vs Wild First Round Game 2 – 05/04/22

The St. Louis Blues dominated the first game of their opening-round series against the Minnesota Wild. There are plenty of bets that offer value entering Game 2, and this betting guide will offer some insight as to what direction to take as the Wild try to bounce back and even the series.

St. Louis Blues (+105) vs Minnesota Wild (-130)

One of these teams looked ready to play in Game 1 on Monday, and it wasn’t the Minnesota Wild. David Perron scored a hat trick, and the Blues quickly silenced a raucous crowd at Xcel Energy Center. The Wild didn’t do anything to bring the crowd back. Minnesota was awesome at home this season, going 31-8-2. It’s hard to believe they would drop two in a row at home to start the series, but it’s also hard to go against St. Louis in this spot.

David Perron St. Louis Blues
David Perron, St. Louis Blues (Jess Starr/The Hockey Writers)

The Wild didn’t lose back-to-back games in any homestand this season, but they did lose consecutive home games to the Vegas Golden Knights in their last playoff series. They still haven’t beaten St. Louis this season, and after a pair of overtime losses, Monday’s game looked like a step back. The value for Game 2 remains with the Blues (+105), and the under (U6.5, -115).

Props

Ryan O’Reilly Points (Over 0.5, -125)

Ryan O’Reilly had a goal and an assist in Game 1, marking the third multi-point game in a row for the Blues captain. He closed the regular season with a pair of three-point games, netting two goals and an assist in each of them. He’s currently riding a four-game point streak this season and has scored at least a point in his last three postseason games. Expect that trend to continue in Game 2.

O’Reilly’s minutes ratchet up in the postseason, and so does his play. The Wild struggled to generate anything in Game 1, and the two-way play by O’Reilly was a big part of that. Expect him to be in the middle of things for the Blues’ offense once again, and take advantage of a pretty good number on him to at least get another point (-125) and extend that postseason point streak to four games.

Torey Krug Power Play Points (Over 0.5, +320)

All of the attention was on Perron’s hat trick, but Torey Krug had a fantastic game. Krug piled up three assists in the win, including two on the power play. As long as the Blues keep getting power-play chances, Krug has a great chance to pile up points. He had 34 assists on the season, and 16 came with St. Louis on the man advantage. The Blues scored at least one power-play goal in every game against Minnesota this season, and they continued that trend in Game 1.

Torey Krug St. Louis Blues
Torey Krug, St. Louis Blues (Amy Irvin / The Hockey Writers)

After returning from an upper-body injury on April 12, Krug has four multi-point outings in his last eight games, including Monday’s Game 1. He’s been great since his return from injury, and he can get on a tear in the playoffs, as he showed when he led the postseason with 16 assists in 2019 with the Boston Bruins. The Wild were the fourth-most penalized team during the regular season, and as long as they keep giving the Blues power plays, Krug is going to be involved. Getting better than 3-to-1 odds on Krug to get a point on the power play is definitely worth a look.

Odds via FanDuel and BetMGM

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