The Bum's National Hockey League April's Playoff's Picks - Trends - News - Etc. !!

[StarDust Bum]

5/22 - YESTERDAY'S RESULTS 1 - 0 + 1.00
OVERALL: + 10.55

MONDAY, MAY 23

GAME TIME(ET) PICK UNITS

SJ at STL 08:00 PM

SJ -102

O 5.0

[StarDust Bum]

Armadillo: Tuesday's six-pack

-- Giants win 1-0 for second consecutive day, first time they've won consecutive games 1-0 since August, 1980.

-- Padres lost in 17 innings Sunday, then on a messed-up pop-up Monday, wasting lot of good pitching by starters Rea, Pomeranz.

-- Sharks 6, Blues 3-- San Jose is one game away from Stanley Cup finals.

-- Royals lost Alex Gordon for 4-6 weeks with a broken hand.

-- Draymond Green will play tonight; he got fined but the league backed off on his suspension- the league prefers good TV ratings to actual justice.

-- Atlanta Braves have five of the first 80 picks in the June 9 amateur draft.

**********

Armadillo: Tuesday's List of 13: Nobody asked me, but........

13) Major league baseball teams aren't allowed to play more than 20 days in a row, so players on Colorado/Pittsburgh had to vote to play Monday, after Sunday's game was rained out in the second inning.

Pirates will now take the field 34 days in a row, Colorado 27, but playing yesterday was better than the Rockies flying in for one day later this season.

12) With Lucas Duda out for an extended time bith back issues, would the Mets trade for a 3B, move David Wright to first? He has been struggling with throws, anyway, this could be the time to put him at first base.

11) Interesting matchup in Chicago tonight: Indians are 7-0 when Josh Tomlin starts on the mound, White Sox are 9-0 when Chris Sale pitches.

10) White Sox announcer Steve Stone was talking about former Braves' slugger Rico Carty (.299 career BA, 204 HRs). Apparently Carty wasn't a trusting soul-- he kept his wallet in hsi uniform pants while he was playing. Seriously.

9) On the Pirate game yesterday afternoon, Colorado announcers were saying that when he played for the Bronx Bombers, New York coaches tried to get Dominic Cervelli to quit and become a minor league coach, like Crash Davis in Bull Durham.

Cervelli just signed a three-year, $31M extension; hope he sends a copy of his checks to New York, so they can see how wrong they were.

8) I've spent a lot of time keeping score at baseball games, was even an official scorer in the minor leagues for two years, but if I started keeping score again, I'd have to change the way I kept score, because of shifting defenses.

A good scorecard is something you can look at six months later and tell what went on in that game, even if you never saw the game. Jotting down "5-3" is no longer enough, because the 3B ("5") might have shifted to the right side of the infield. Now you need to take notes and be more descriptive, in order to be more accurate.

7) Raptors 105, Cavaliers 99- Why do teams play so much better at home?

6) Trevon Blueitt is going back to Xavier; the Musketeers have their top four guys on the perimeter back and are a top 25 team.

5) Drivers in this year's Indianapolis 500 represent 11 different countries.

4) In his last 1,001 innings pitched, Clayton Kershaw's ERA is 1.995.

3) Players who have come to bat with most men on base this season:
Rizzo 150, Polanco 147, Pujols 143, Abreu 137.

2) Players with 100+ PA who have driven in the highest %age of baserunners:
Bruce 26.7%, Betts 24.2%, Markakis 24.2%, Bradley Jr 23.4%

1) Players with 100+ PA who have driven in the lowest %age of baserunners
Gennett 1-64, MTaylor 2-68, Norris 3-85.

[StarDust Bum]

NHL
Dunkel

Tuesday, May 24


Pittsburgh @ Tampa Bay

Game 21-22
May 24, 2016 @ 8:00 pm

Dunkel Rating:
Pittsburgh
12.710
Tampa Bay
13.735
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Tampa Bay
by 1
5
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Pittsburgh
-140
5 1/2
Dunkel Pick:
Tampa Bay
(+120); Under




NHL
Armadillo's Write-Up

Tuesday, May 24

Tampa Bay-Pittsburgh (TB 3-2)
Tampa Bay tied Game 5 with 3:16 left, won it 0:53 into OT; they can end series with win on home ice, but road team is 3-2 in this series. Lightning won seven of its last ten games with Penguins- they won four of last five played here. Over is 10-1-1 in last 12 series games. Lightning is 2-11 on power play in first three games in this series, Pittsburgh is 3-16. Pittsburgh is 6-4 in its last ten games, going 4-3 in last seven on road. Tampa Bay won three of last four home games; four of its last eight games overall went to overtime.

Playoffs tally: 1st round-- Home: 23-24, Over: 16-17-14
2nd round-- Home: 16-9, Over: 11-5-9
Conference finals-- Home 4-6, Over 5-4-1




NHL

Tuesday, May 24

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Trend Report
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8:00 PM
PITTSBURGH vs. TAMPA BAY
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Pittsburgh's last 5 games when playing on the road against Tampa Bay
Pittsburgh is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Tampa Bay
Tampa Bay is 7-2 SU in its last 9 games at home
Tampa Bay is 6-2 SU in its last 8 games when playing Pittsburgh

NHL
Long Sheet

Tuesday, May 24

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

PITTSBURGH (58-30-0-10, 126 pts.) at TAMPA BAY (57-34-0-6, 120 pts.) - 5/24/2016, 8:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
PITTSBURGH is 14-22 ATS (-15.7 Units) in a road game where where the total is 5.5 over the last 2 seasons.
TAMPA BAY is 39-20 ATS (+6.7 Units) second half of the season this season.
TAMPA BAY is 203-211 ATS (+496.5 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season since 1996.
PITTSBURGH is 58-40 ATS (+4.0 Units) in all games this season.
PITTSBURGH is 40-21 ATS (+10.7 Units) second half of the season this season.
PITTSBURGH is 60-43 ATS (+105.7 Units) in road games on Tuesday nights since 1996.
TAMPA BAY is 7-12 ATS (-9.5 Units) on Tuesday nights this season.

Head-to-Head Series History
TAMPA BAY is 7-7 (+1.6 Units) against the spread versus PITTSBURGH over the last 3 seasons
TAMPA BAY is 7-7-0 straight up against PITTSBURGH over the last 3 seasons
11 of 13 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+9.0 Units)

[StarDust Bum]

NHL
Short Sheet

Tuesday, May 24

Pittsburgh at Tampa Bay, 8:05 PM ET
Pittsburgh: 26-13 SU after 1 or more consecutive losses
Tampa Bay: 7-12 SU on Tuesday nights

[StarDust Bum]

Preview: Penguins (48-26) at Lightning (46-31)
Date: May 24, 2016 8:00 PM EDT

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) The bigger the playoff moment, the more Nikita Kucherov shines.


The young Russian has a knack for scoring when Tampa Bay needs it most, which is one of the reasons the Lightning are within one victory of reaching the Stanley Cup final for the second straight year.

Kucherov has found the back of the net a NHL-leading 11 times in 15 games this postseason, seven of them in situations in which he's either tied the score or given his team a lead.

The 22-year-old's latest addition to his impressive playoff resume he began compiling last year was a late goal Sunday to force overtime against Pittsburgh in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference finals. He also notched an assist on Tyler Johnson's winner less than a minute into the extra period.

The 4-3 victory on the road gave Tampa Bay a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven series. Game 6 in Tuesday night at Amalie Arena.

'When you're a rising star in this league, as he is ... every team's got one of those guys at some point,' Lightning coach Jon Cooper said. 'It just seems the bigger the moment, the bigger they rise to the occasion. He is proving that last year wasn't a fluke. He's just a gifted, skilled, determined player. He's really a pleasure to coach.'

Kucherov had 10 goals in 26 playoff games a year ago, including a pair of overtime winners that helped the Lightning to the Stanley Cup final, where they lost to the Chicago Blackhawks in six games. One more victory and Tampa Bay will become the first team to make consecutive trips to the championship round since the Penguins and Detroit Red Wings did it in 2008 and 2009.

'He keeps climbing the ladder, and he keeps getting better. But what has really been remarkable for me this year in watching him is the timeliness of his game. He's not scoring one goal in a 6-1 loss or the sixth goal in a 6-1 win,' Cooper said Monday.

'He's getting the game-tier, game-winner; sets up the biggest of the biggest goals, and that says a little bit about the type of player you are,' the coach added. 'When you need him, he's the one ultimately, more often than not, that's there for you. I think that's the one thing that's remarkable about him.'

Pittsburgh has gone from a 2-1 series lead to facing elimination for the first time this postseason after losing consecutively for the first time since January.

Coach Mike Sullivan said he won't make a decision on a starting goaltender for Game 6 until Tuesday morning. Marc-Andre Fleury made his first start in nearly two months in Game 5, and was unable to protect leads of 2-0 and 3-2.

Rookie Matt Murray started the first four games of this series and is 9-4 with a 2.33 goals-against-average and .923 save percentage.

'I thought Marc made some big saves for us, especially early in the game,' Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said, adding it was difficult to gauge how much the long layoff impacted Fleury's performance.

'It's a tough circumstance. We believe in the guys we have. We think we have quality people, but it's an imperfect situation,' Sullivan said before the team flew south to Florida on Monday. 'All things considered, we're trying to make the best decisions we can.'

The Penguins are confident than can rebound Tuesday night and take the series back home for a seventh game.

'I believe in my team. I believe in myself, and we can come back to Pittsburgh for sure,' Penguins star Evgeni Malkin said.

'Every game you shake off, win or lose,' Penguins left wing Chris Kunitz said.

'This group has done a terrific job all year of just staying in the moment and not dwelling on the past, not getting ahead of itself, and just trying to focus on that one game in hand,' Sullivan said, 'and that's what we're going to have to do.'

Tampa Bay plans to approach it the same way.

The Lightning beat the New York Rangers on the road to take a 3-2 lead in last year's conference finals. They returned home and were trounced 7-3 in Game 6.

'You can't sit here and dictate or guarantee what the result's going to be, but our mindset going into the game has got to be a heck of a lot different,' Cooper said. 'And our group is well aware of that.'


SERIES AT A GLANCE

GAME 1
Lightning at Penguins
Fri, May 13 Final 3 to 1
Recaps

GAME 2
Lightning at Penguins
Mon, May 16 Final 2 to 3
Recaps

GAME 3
Penguins at Lightning
Wed, May 18 Final 4 to 2
Recaps

GAME 4
Penguins at Lightning
Fri, May 20 Final 3 to 4
Recaps

GAME 5
Lightning at Penguins
Sun, May 22 Final 4 to 3
Recaps

GAME 6
Penguins at Lightning
Tue, May 24 - 8:00PM EDT

GAME 7
Lightning at Penguins
Thu, May 26 - 8:00PM EDT

[StarDust Bum]

Hitchcock hedges on lineup for Game 5
May 23, 2016

ST. LOUIS (AP) St. Louis Blues coach Ken Hitchcock will decide on the status of injured players after the pre-game skate before Game 5 of the Western Conference finals against the San Jose Sharks on Monday night.

Captain David Backes and rookie Robby Fabbri, both forwards, were injured in Game 4. Backes missed the final two periods and Fabbri had just two shifts in the third period of a 6-3 victory that knotted the series at 2-2.

Hitchcock said he'll have the same number of players dressed for the warmup as in Game 4, when he had two extra forwards and one extra defenseman on the ice.

Sharks coach Peter DeBoer indicated he'd have no lineup changes.

[StarDust Bum]

Blues sticking with Allen in Game 5 against Sharks
May 22, 2016

ST. LOUIS (AP) The St. Louis Blues are sticking with goalie Jake Allen in Game 5 of the Western Conference final against the San Jose Sharks.

It's not a huge surprise considering how well the Blues played after the goalie switch. They're coming off perhaps their best game of the postseason, a convincing 6-3 victory that knotted the series at two games heading into Monday night's game.

Coach Ken Hitchcock switched to Allen to give the team a ''jolt'' because it was becoming overly reliant on Brian Elliott. He didn't care if it was viewed as a goalie controversy.

''We needed to play harder for a goalie,'' Hitchcock said. ''It didn't matter if it was Ells or Jake or whatever.''

Hitchcock kept quiet about other potential roster issues, saying he'd have updates on captain David Backes and rookie Robby Fabbri on game day.

Both have been major reasons the Blues are in their first conference final since 2001, Fabbri with 14 points and Backes with seven goals and 13 points.

Sharks coach Peter DeBoer expects a bounce-back effort in Game 5 without making lineup changes.

''You know what, we've played some really good hockey in the last two or three weeks,'' DeBoer said. ''I think we can fix it without having to take those type of measures.''

But DeBoer added he'd ''sleep on it.''

Allen and Elliott basically split duties during the regular season, each playing long stretches because the other was injured. Allen was ready when the call came and made 31 saves in Game 4.

''I've been sort of letting him do his thing the first three series,'' Allen said. ''Hitch told me to go get `em. It's my chance now.''

Allen started all six games in the Blues' first-round loss to Minnesota last spring. He learned from that experience not to think he had to be extra special.

''I think I came in last year a little bit antsy,'' Allen said. ''I think this year we just realize it's honestly another hockey game. Be yourself, play your game, what we've done all year will bring success.''

The Blues ended a scoreless drought of 156:59 with two first-period goals and poured it on in Game 4, easing any pressure Allen might have been feeling. The scoring matched their high for the playoffs in a 6-1 Game 7 victory at Dallas.

''We knew we had so much more in us to give,'' Allen said. ''If it was the other way around, and we were playing phenomenal and we still weren't finding ways to win, then maybe that's another story.''

Backes didn't play the final two periods on Saturday night. Fabbri had just two shifts in the third period after getting shaken up on a hit by Tommy Wingels.

Forward Paul Stastny was entering the ice just after Fabbri was hit and didn't see it, but didn't think Blues players were too riled about it.

''I mean playoff time, you know you're always going to get hit when you have the puck or when you move the puck, a second or two after,'' Stastny said. ''That's just how it is - we do the same thing to them, they do the same thing to us.''

Before they stumbled in an opportunity to seize control of the series, the Sharks had been dominant. DeBoer anticipates a highly motivated roster for Game 5.

''You know, missed opportunity,'' DeBoer said. ''They want to make it right.''

Martin Jones is the franchise's first goalie to post consecutive playoff shutouts. He struggled under the Blues' pressure and was lifted for the first time in the postseason after allowing four goals on 19 shots in Game 4.

''They scored a couple goals,'' Jones said. ''You don't like it, but you move on. You get ready for the next one.''

Forward Logan Couture said when the Sharks have had setbacks this season they've always found a way to ''push back.''

''We know in our room we didn't play well at all,'' Couture said. ''We made a lot of mistakes that we haven't been making throughout these playoffs, but Game 5 is a new opportunity for us.''

[StarDust Bum]

Kucherov's excellence driving Lightning
May 23, 2016

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) The bigger the playoff moment, the more Nikita Kucherov shines.

The young Russian has a knack for scoring when Tampa Bay needs it most, which is one of the reasons the Lightning are within one victory of reaching the Stanley Cup final for the second straight year.

Kucherov has found the back of the net a NHL-leading 11 times in 15 games this postseason, seven of them in situations in which he's either tied the score or given his team a lead.

The 22-year-old's latest addition to his impressive playoff resume he began compiling last year was a late goal Sunday to force overtime against Pittsburgh in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference finals. He also notched an assist on Tyler Johnson's winner less than a minute into the extra period.

The 4-3 victory on the road gave Tampa Bay a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven series. Game 6 in Tuesday night at Amalie Arena.

''When you're a rising star in this league, as he is ... every team's got one of those guys at some point,'' Lightning coach Jon Cooper said. ''It just seems the bigger the moment, the bigger they rise to the occasion. He is proving that last year wasn't a fluke. He's just a gifted, skilled, determined player. He's really a pleasure to coach.''

Kucherov had 10 goals in 26 playoff games a year ago, including a pair of overtime winners that helped the Lightning to the Stanley Cup final, where they lost to the Chicago Blackhawks in six games. One more victory and Tampa Bay will become the first team to make consecutive trips to the championship round since the Penguins and Detroit Red Wings did it in 2008 and 2009.

''He keeps climbing the ladder, and he keeps getting better. But what has really been remarkable for me this year in watching him is the timeliness of his game. He's not scoring one goal in a 6-1 loss or the sixth goal in a 6-1 win,'' Cooper said Monday.

''He's getting the game-tier, game-winner; sets up the biggest of the biggest goals, and that says a little bit about the type of player you are,'' the coach added. ''When you need him, he's the one ultimately, more often than not, that's there for you. I think that's the one thing that's remarkable about him.''

Pittsburgh has gone from a 2-1 series lead to facing elimination for the first time this postseason after losing consecutively for the first time since January.

Coach Mike Sullivan said he won't make a decision on a starting goaltender for Game 6 until Tuesday morning. Marc-Andre Fleury made his first start in nearly two months in Game 5, and was unable to protect leads of 2-0 and 3-2.

Rookie Matt Murray started the first four games of this series and is 9-4 with a 2.33 goals-against-average and .923 save percentage.

''I thought Marc made some big saves for us, especially early in the game,'' Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said, adding it was difficult to gauge how much the long layoff impacted Fleury's performance.

''It's a tough circumstance. We believe in the guys we have. We think we have quality people, but it's an imperfect situation,'' Sullivan said before the team flew south to Florida on Monday. ''All things considered, we're trying to make the best decisions we can.''

The Penguins are confident than can rebound Tuesday night and take the series back home for a seventh game.

''I believe in my team. I believe in myself, and we can come back to Pittsburgh for sure,'' Penguins star Evgeni Malkin said.

''Every game you shake off, win or lose,'' Penguins left wing Chris Kunitz said.

''This group has done a terrific job all year of just staying in the moment and not dwelling on the past, not getting ahead of itself, and just trying to focus on that one game in hand,'' Sullivan said, ''and that's what we're going to have to do.''

Tampa Bay plans to approach it the same way.

The Lightning beat the New York Rangers on the road to take a 3-2 lead in last year's conference finals. They returned home and were trounced 7-3 in Game 6.

''You can't sit here and dictate or guarantee what the result's going to be, but our mindset going into the game has got to be a heck of a lot different,'' Cooper said. ''And our group is well aware of that.''

[StarDust Bum]

NHL TOP TRENDS

NHL > (21) PITTSBURGH@ (22) TAMPA BAY | 2016-05-24 20:05:00 - 2016-05-24 20:05:00
Play UNDER PITTSBURGH on the totalin Road games revenging a home loss versus opponent
The record is 5 Overs and 18 Unders for the last two seasons (+13.8 units)

NHL > (21) PITTSBURGH@ (22) TAMPA BAY | 2016-05-24 20:05:00 - 2016-05-24 20:05:00
Play UNDER PITTSBURGH on the totalin Road games revenging a loss versus opponent
The record is 8 Overs and 24 Unders for the last two seasons (+16.3 units)

[StarDust Bum]

5/23 - YESTERDAY'S RESULTS: 1 - 0 + 1.00
OVERALL : + 11 .55

TUESDAY, MAY 24

GAME TIME(ET) PICK UNITS

PIT at TB 08:00 PM

PIT -133

O 5.5

[StarDust Bum]

Armadillo: Wednesday's six-pack

-- NFL awarded Super Bowls to Atlanta-Miami-LA; two of those three cities are getting new stadiums, which is not a coincidence.

-- Nationals 7, Mets 4-- Matt Harvey wouldn't asnwer questions after game. Uh-oh.

-- Bengals' TE Tyler Eifert hurt his ankle in the Pro Bowl, had it operated on this week, may miss Cincinnati's season opener. What took so long?

-- BYU's football team has a tough September: Arizona, @ Utah, then UCLA, West Virginia at home. They also visit Michigan State, Boise State, Cincinnati later on.

-- 28 college football teams changed head coaches this year, 22% of all I-A teams.

-- Oklahoma City 118, Golden State 94-- Thunder go up 3-1; defending champs are in real trouble- they gave up 70+ points in first half of this game.

**********

Armadillo: Wednesday's List of 13: Mid-week musings.......

13) Under Armour, UCLA signed a 15-year, $280M apparel/shoe deal this week, which will make entitled athletes in football/basketball complain that they're not going to get a piece of that pie. They are getting a free college education, so there's that.

12) In a probably-related development, Pac-12 football teams will play fewer 10:30 kickoff games, in part so Under Armour brand can get more eastern exposure on TV.

11) Monday night in Miami, Logan Morrison took a marginal pitch for a strike and before the TV people could mute their field mikes, Morrison unleashed a string of obscenities against plate umpire Lance Barksdale. Good stuff.

10) Former NBA vet Kerry Kittles signed on as an assistant coach at Princeton.

9) ACC-Big 14 basketball challenge is a mere six months away; Michigan State-Duke is the premere matchup. UNC-Indiana, Ohio State-Virginia, Purdue-Louisville are some of the other featured games.

8) Devin Watson, who scored 20.3 ppg as a soph at San Francisco LY, transferred to San Diego State, where he will sit out this year, then play two more years. More good news for Steve Fisher; Malik Pope dropped out of the NBA Draft, will go back to school for another year. Decisions like that will mean a lot next winter.

7) Delaware Blue Hens finally hired a basketball coach, Notre Dame assistant coach Martin Inglesby, who has ties to the Philadelphia area. Plus Mike Brey used to be the Delaware coach, so that helps. Delaware has very few players; hiring a coach on May 24 is not the ideal way to run an athletic program.

6) Looking thru all-time college records today, noticed that Rams' QB Case Keenum holds I-A records for most career passing yards (19,217) and pssing TDs (217). it didn't prevent the Rams from spending a king's ransom on acquiring Jared Goff to take Keenum's job, but those records are still impressive.

5) Are there any phone booths left in this country? Was watching a movie the other night and someone ran to a phone booth to make a call, which automatically makes it a fairly old movie, I guess.

4) Was doing NFL research today; Carolina beat the Buccaneers twice LY, 37-23 and 38-10. Panthers scored nine TDs in the two games: two by the defense, with five of the seven TDs scored by the offense coming on drives of less than 50 yards.

3) NHL's Florida Panthers had 103 points this year, most they've ever had in their 23-year history, but they just fired their scouting dorector who had been with the team for 14 years, thru seven head coaches and five GMs. There is a battle there between the analytics people and the old school people, and analytics people are winning.

2) Long time ago, November 1993, I'm an assistant high school basketball coach, in my first year at this school, whose program was a mess. Our head coach is a great guy but he was in over his head at this job. After the second game of the year (we had won the first game), there were some attitude problems in the group.

Coach said something after that game that I've never forgotten: "So we lose a game and the rats start jumping off the ship", one of the all-time best quotes I've heard.

That is where the Warriors are now; their bandwagon is emptying quickly; nitwit media people have declared this series over, even though nine NBA teams have rallied from 3-1 deficits to win their series. Steve Kerr will probably rally his troops with an "us against the world" speech, since no one thinks Golden State can rally now.

We'll see.

1) White Sox TV voice Jason Benetti has an inspirational story; he was born with cerebral palsy, but never let that stop him. He went to college at Syracuse, then got his law degree from Wake Forest. He later joined ESPN and now has a job broadcasting ball in the major leagues, and he is very good at it. Good for him.

[StarDust Bum]

NHL

Wednesday, May 25

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Wednesday's NHL Conference Finals betting preview: Blues at Sharks
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Hitchcock made a bold move prior to Game 4 and replaced Brian Elliott with Jake Allen - and he's hoping for a similar result in Wednesday's Game 6 by turning back to Elliott.

St. Louis Blues at San Jose Sharks (A: +140, H: -160, O/U: 5)

Sharks lead series 3-2

The San Jose Sharks are one win away from the first trip to the Stanley Cup final in franchise history and can punch their ticket with a victory over the visiting St. Louis Blues in Wednesday's Game 6. The Sharks pushed the Blues to the brink of elimination with a 6-3 win in St. Louis on Monday to seize a 3-2 lead in the best-of-7 series.

San Jose relied on a familiar formula to edge closer to advancing beyond the Western Conference final for the first time in four attempts -- a staunch power play and its No. 1 line anchored by captain Joe Pavelski. "You don't get this chance every day on home ice," Sharks forward Chris Tierney said of the possibility of wrapping up the series at the SAP Center. "Sometimes you might not get this chance in your career, or maybe once. I think guys know that and they really want to take advantage of it." The Blues fell to 4-6 at home with Monday's loss, but they won Games 5 and 7 in Dallas in the second round and had their best performance of their series with a 6-3 victory in Game 4 at San Jose. "The realization is we win or we go home," St. Louis captain David Backes said. "That's how much onus we need to put on playing our best game of the series."

TV: 9 p.m. ET, NBCSN, CBC, TVAS

PROBABLE GOALIES:

Blues - Brian Elliott (W/L: 9-8, GAA: 2.34, SAVE %: .928)

Sharks - Martin Jones (W/L: 11-6, GAA: 2.13, SAVE %: .918)

ABOUT THE BLUES (59-31-11, 40-45 O/U): Coach Ken Hitchcock made a bold move prior to Game 4 and replaced goaltender Brian Elliott with Jake Allen - and he's hoping for a similar result in Wednesday's win-or-go-home Game 6 by turning back to Elliott, who was pulled in Game 3 after starting the first 17 games of the postseason. "We got the jolt we needed from Jake," Hitchcock said in explaining why he's going back to Elliott. "These are Brian's playoffs. We'd like to see him finish the job." What St. Louis really needs is some production from leading scorer Vladimir Tarasenko, who has failed to register a point in the series and has one goal -- an empty-netter -- in the last eight contests.

ABOUT THE SHARKS (57-33-9, 50-38 O/U): Pavelski is showing why he wears the "C" for San Jose, not only scoring a playoff-leading 12 goals but making them count -- he tied Game 5 by scoring late in the second period before putting the Sharks ahead to stay 16 seconds into the third with a highlight-reel deflection. "You think back to some of the best scorers ever," Sharks coach Peter DeBoer said. "His ability to get his stick on pucks in the offensive zone, in front of the net, different angles, is as good as anybody I've ever seen. But it's a great lesson. He works at it every day." Joe Thornton set up three goals Monday to tie teammate Logan Couture with a playoff-best 14 assists.

TRENDS:

* Blues are 4-0 in their last 4 after allowing 5 goals or more in their previous game.
* Sharks are 6-1 in their last 7 home games.
* Over is 16-3-7 in Blues last 26 games playing on 1 days rest.
* Over is 4-0-1 in Sharks last 5 Wednesday games.
* Blues are 8-3 in the last 11 meetings in San Jose.

CONSENSUS: The home team San Jose Sharks are getting 61 percent of the public wagers for Wednesday's Game 6. The Consensus picks on the total are favoring the Over at a rate of 65 percent.

[StarDust Bum]

NHL
Dunkel

Wednesday, May 25


St. Louis @ San Jose

Game 23-24
May 25, 2016 @ 9:00 pm

Dunkel Rating:
St. Louis
13.174
San Jose
12.160
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
St. Louis
by 1
4 1/2
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
San Jose
-160
5
Dunkel Pick:
St. Louis
(+140); Under




NHL
Short Sheet

Wednesday, May 25

St Louis at San Jose, 9:05 PM ET
St Louis: 31-19 SU in road games
San Jose: 9-12 SU in home games after a win by 2 goals or more




NHL
Armadillo's Write-Up

Wednesday, May 25

San Jose-St Louis (SJ 3-2)
Road team won seven of last ten St Louis-San Jose games- under is 3-2 in this series, but last couple of games went over. San Jose won three of last four games here, St Louis won three of last four road tilts. San Jose is 4-18 on power play in series, Blues are 3-15. St Louis is 6-3 on road so far in playoffs- they gave up three goals on only nine shots in third period of Game 5, after Sharks tied game with 1:27 left in second period. St Louis lost four of last five games when they scored less than four goals. San Jose held five of last six opponents under four goals.

Playoffs tally: 1st round-- Home: 23-24, Over: 16-17-14
2nd round-- Home: 16-9, Over: 11-5-9
Conference finals-- Home 4-7, Over 6-4-1




NHL

Wednesday, May 25

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Trend Report
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9:00 PM
ST. LOUIS vs. SAN JOSE
St. Louis is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games on the road
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of St. Louis's last 6 games when playing San Jose
San Jose is 4-2 SU in its last 6 games
San Jose is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games at home

NHL
Long Sheet

Wednesday, May 25

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ST LOUIS (59-32-0-10, 128 pts.) at SAN JOSE (57-34-0-8, 122 pts.) - 5/25/2016, 9:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
SAN JOSE is 26-12 ATS (+8.1 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record this season.
SAN JOSE is 21-6 ATS (+14.1 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season this season.
ST LOUIS is 59-42 ATS (+5.4 Units) in all games this season.
ST LOUIS is 29-16 ATS (+12.7 Units) in a road game where where the total is 5 or less this season.
ST LOUIS is 21-11 ATS (+9.9 Units) in road games second half of the season this season.
ST LOUIS is 34-24 ATS (+7.9 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record this season.
ST LOUIS is 23-15 ATS (+6.1 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record in the second half of the season this season.
SAN JOSE is 13-17 ATS (-10.3 Units) in a home game where where the total is 5 or less this season.
SAN JOSE is 28-29 ATS (-23.3 Units) in home games second half of the season over the last 2 seasons.
SAN JOSE is 9-12 ATS (-7.7 Units) in home games after a win by 2 goals or more this season.

Head-to-Head Series History
SAN JOSE is 9-5 (+2.8 Units) against the spread versus ST LOUIS over the last 3 seasons
SAN JOSE is 9-5-0 straight up against ST LOUIS over the last 3 seasons
8 of 13 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons . (Over=+3.0 Units)

[StarDust Bum]

Preview: Blues (49-24) at Sharks (46-30)
Date: May 25, 2016 9:00 PM EDT

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) Patrick Marleau has played more than 1,500 games with the San Jose Sharks since joining the NHL as an 18-year-old draft pick but never one quite like the next one.

All those past playoff disappointments that have seemed to define the career of players like Marleau and Joe Thornton could be put to the side temporarily with one more San Jose win.

For the first time in 25 seasons as an NHL franchise, the Sharks are just one win away from making the Stanley Cup final. San Jose takes a 3-2 lead over St. Louis in the Western Conference final into Game 6 on Wednesday night in what should be a frenzied Shark Tank.

'It's nice,' Marleau said Tuesday. 'It's not our final goal but it's as far as we've been so it's good that way. There's still a lot to go.'

For more than a decade, the Sharks have been known as much for their postseason failures as their regular-season success. San Jose has the second-most wins and has played in the second-most playoff series since the start of the 2003-04 season but has fallen short every spring.

The Sharks won just three total games in their first three trips to the conference final, lost an opening series as the top seed in 2009 and most memorably became the fourth NHL team ever to lose a best-of-seven series after winning the first three games against Los Angeles in 2014.

The Sharks then hit what they called rock bottom last year when they missed the playoffs for the first time since 2003 but rebounded this season under first-year coach Peter DeBoer and a core anchored by players like Thornton, Marleau, captain Joe Pavelski, Logan Couture and Marc-Edouard Vlasic that have spent years trying to bring a title to San Jose.

'It would be huge,' Marleau said. 'It's something I've always wanted to do here for the fans and the Bay Area. They have been supporting us over the years and they deserve it.'

After winning Game 5 in St. Louis 6-3 on Monday night, they returned home to the excitement of a possible clincher. While the Blues are making another goalie switch, putting Brian Elliott back in net after going with Jake Allen the past two games, and figuring out how to get top goal scorer Vladimir Tarasenko back on his game after being shut down for five games, the focus for the Sharks is simpler.

They just want to stick to their game and not let thoughts of the prize ahead distract them.

'You just try to stay in the moment and not think too much about it,' Marleau said. 'Just control what you can control. That's the biggest thing and knowing that you're in it with 20 other guys trying to do the same thing. That gives you a little extra boost.'

The Blues hope the move back to Elliott gives them a boost. Elliott started the first 17 games of the playoffs before coach Ken Hitchcock went to Allen in Game 4 in San Jose.

St. Louis won that game 6-3 to tie the series at two games apiece but Allen gave up four goals on 25 shots Monday night. That led to Hitchcock changing again to Elliott, who stopped 62 of 65 shots in St. Louis' Game 7 wins over Chicago and Dallas earlier in the playoffs.

'We needed a jolt to get back in the series and we got it,' Hitchcock said. 'Unfortunately we didn't get the win yesterday, but this has been Brian's playoffs and we'd like him to finish the job.'

More importantly, the Blues would like to get Tarasenko going. He scored 40 goals in the regular season and had 13 points in 14 games the first two rounds but has been completely shut down by Vlasic and San Jose's defense in the conference final.

Tarasenko has a -4 rating for the series and has managed only four shots on goal the past three games.

'What happens with goal-scorers when they get frustrated is they look to hit home runs,' Hitchcock said. 'We need him just to act like a worker. I know that's a funny thing to say, but he's looking for the home run.'


SERIES AT A GLANCE

GAME 1
Sharks at Blues
Sun, May 15 Final 1 to 2
Recaps

GAME 2
Sharks at Blues
Tue, May 17 Final 4 to 0
Recaps

GAME 3
Blues at Sharks
Thu, May 19 Final 0 to 3
Recaps

GAME 4
Blues at Sharks
Sat, May 21 Final 6 to 3
Recaps

GAME 5
Sharks at Blues
Mon, May 23 Final 6 to 3
Recaps

GAME 6
Blues at Sharks
Wed, May 25 - 9:00PM EDT

GAME 7
Sharks at Blues
Fri, May 27 - 8:00PM EDT

[StarDust Bum]

Sharks one win from first Cup final
May 24, 2016

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) Patrick Marleau has played more than 1,500 games with the San Jose Sharks since joining the NHL as an 18-year-old draft pick but never one quite like the next one.

All those past playoff disappointments that have seemed to define the career of players like Marleau and Joe Thornton could be put to the side temporarily with one more San Jose win.

For the first time in 25 seasons as an NHL franchise, the Sharks are just one win away from making the Stanley Cup final. San Jose takes a 3-2 lead over St. Louis in the Western Conference final into Game 6 on Wednesday night in what should be a frenzied Shark Tank.

''It's nice,'' Marleau said Tuesday. ''It's not our final goal but it's as far as we've been so it's good that way. There's still a lot to go.''

For more than a decade, the Sharks have been known as much for their postseason failures as their regular-season success. San Jose has the second-most wins and has played in the second-most playoff series since the start of the 2003-04 season but has fallen short every spring.

The Sharks won just three total games in their first three trips to the conference final, lost an opening series as the top seed in 2009 and most memorably became the fourth NHL team ever to lose a best-of-seven series after winning the first three games against Los Angeles in 2014.

The Sharks then hit what they called rock bottom last year when they missed the playoffs for the first time since 2003 but rebounded this season under first-year coach Peter DeBoer and a core anchored by players like Thornton, Marleau, captain Joe Pavelski, Logan Couture and Marc-Edouard Vlasic that have spent years trying to bring a title to San Jose.

''It would be huge,'' Marleau said. ''It's something I've always wanted to do here for the fans and the Bay Area. They have been supporting us over the years and they deserve it.''

After winning Game 5 in St. Louis 6-3 on Monday night, they returned home to the excitement of a possible clincher. While the Blues are making another goalie switch, putting Brian Elliott back in net after going with Jake Allen the past two games, and figuring out how to get top goal scorer Vladimir Tarasenko back on his game after being shut down for five games, the focus for the Sharks is simpler.

They just want to stick to their game and not let thoughts of the prize ahead distract them.

''You just try to stay in the moment and not think too much about it,'' Marleau said. ''Just control what you can control. That's the biggest thing and knowing that you're in it with 20 other guys trying to do the same thing. That gives you a little extra boost.''

The Blues hope the move back to Elliott gives them a boost. Elliott started the first 17 games of the playoffs before coach Ken Hitchcock went to Allen in Game 4 in San Jose.

St. Louis won that game 6-3 to tie the series at two games apiece but Allen gave up four goals on 25 shots Monday night. That led to Hitchcock changing again to Elliott, who stopped 62 of 65 shots in St. Louis' Game 7 wins over Chicago and Dallas earlier in the playoffs.

''We needed a jolt to get back in the series and we got it,'' Hitchcock said. ''Unfortunately we didn't get the win yesterday, but this has been Brian's playoffs and we'd like him to finish the job.''

More importantly, the Blues would like to get Tarasenko going. He scored 40 goals in the regular season and had 13 points in 14 games the first two rounds but has been completely shut down by Vlasic and San Jose's defense in the conference final.

Tarasenko has a -4 rating for the series and has managed only four shots on goal the past three games.

''What happens with goal-scorers when they get frustrated is they look to hit home runs,'' Hitchcock said. ''We need him just to act like a worker. I know that's a funny thing to say, but he's looking for the home run.''