Utah vs. St. Louis Blues Pick & Prediction APRIL 15th 2025
Preview and Prediction
The St. Louis Blues will be playing their final game of the regular season on Tuesday, and they are hoping that their home game against the Utah Hockey Club will not be their last meaningful one until the fall.
The Blues (43-30-8, 94 points) have control over their own fate. If they defeat Utah (38-30-13, 89 points) in regulation, they will secure one of the two Western Conference wild-card spots. However, they could still clinch a playoff spot regardless of the outcome of Tuesday's game, but it would require some outside help if they were to lose in overtime or regulation.
Just 10 days ago, the Blues were celebrating a franchise-record 12-game winning streak that propelled them into a playoff position. However, since then, they have suffered three consecutive losses (0-2-1), with their most recent defeat coming at the hands of the Seattle Kraken on Saturday. Despite holding a 3-2 lead, the Blues gave up the tying goal in the third period and ultimately fell 4-3 in a shootout.
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The St. Louis players are hoping that playing their final game of the regular season at home will work in their favor.
"Coming out of the (4 Nations Face-Off) break, we had our backs against the wall and went on a great run," said Blues goalie Jordan Binnington. "Now, our backs are against the wall again, but this time we have a chance to clinch. I think that energy and excitement will lead to a strong performance."
Binnington was the goaltender for the Canadian team that won the midseason all-star tournament. Since returning from the break, he has recorded a 12-3-1 record with a .907 save percentage and a 2.31 goals-against average. This is a significant improvement from his pre-break record of 15-19-4 with an .897 save percentage and a 2.89 GAA.
In terms of offense, center Robert Thomas has been on fire for the Blues. He is currently on an 11-game point streak, with four goals and 19 assists. Despite missing 12 games earlier in the season due to a fractured ankle, Thomas leads the team with 79 points (21 goals, 58 assists) and is just two assists away from matching his career-high from last season.
On the other side, the Utah Hockey Club will finish just outside of a playoff spot in their first season after relocating from Arizona. The team is led by St. Louis-native Clayton Keller, who could potentially spoil the postseason chances of the team he grew up watching.
In their most recent game, Keller played in his 600th NHL game and had two goals and two assists in Utah's 7-3 victory over the Nashville Predators. He has been on a hot streak, with four goals and five assists in his last five games.
Keller and his teammates have been consistently scoring over the past week, with a total of 22 goals in their last four games (3-0-1). Keller credits their success to their defensemen, who have been doing a great job of getting pucks to the net and creating scoring opportunities.
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The Blues will likely face Karel Vejmelka in goal for Utah. Vejmelka had started in 23 consecutive games, the longest regular-season streak by an NHL goalie in 10 years, until Matt Villalta got the win in their most recent game. During his streak, Vejmelka had a record of 13-6-4 with a .902 save percentage and a 2.45 GAA.
Utah vs. St. Louis Blues Recap APR 15TH 2025
Pavel Buchnevich celebrated his 30th birthday two days early as his three-point performance helped the St. Louis Blues secure a playoff spot on Tuesday with a 6-1 win over the visiting Utah Hockey Club.
Buchnevich finished with a goal and two assists for his fourth three-point game of the season and second in three games. Jordan Kyrou added a pair of third-period goals. Jimmy Snuggerud got his first career goal to go with an assist, and Zack Bolduc and Brayden Schenn each recorded a goal and an assist as well.
Robert Thomas and Cam Fowler both notched a pair of assists. Jordan Binnington stretched his home winning streak to 11 by stopping 22 Utah shots.
Utah (38-31-13, 89 points) mustered only one goal -- a power-play tally from Clayton Keller -- in its season finale. Mikhail Sergachev and Nick Schmaltz set up Keller's 30th goal. Karel Vejmelka made 23 saves.
Buchnevich made sure the Blues (44-30-8, 96 points) would not miss out on the playoffs for a third straight season as he had a hand in the team's first three goals - all in a four-goal first period.
His pass to Snuggerud led to the Blues' first goal. The rookie could not score on the breakaway, but Schenn pounced on the rebound with 11:52 left.
Three minutes later, Buchnevich reached the 20-goal plateau for the fifth consecutive season and sixth in his nine seasons by finishing off a give-and-go with Jake Neighbours.
Snuggerud finally got his goal, on a power play with 5:15 to go in the period. Near the crease, the forward's right skate stepped on the puck and flipped it past Vejmelka.
Bolduc ended the first-period onslaught in the final minute with a power-play goal.
Thomas' two assists extended his points streak to a dozen games and enabled him to have back-to-back 60-assist seasons.
Keller scored on the power play with 14:20 to go in the second. St. Louis gave its guests three more power-play opportunities, but Utah could not get another puck past Binnington.
Kyrou scored twice in the third, giving him a team-best 36 goals.
St. Louis will face Winnipeg in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.