The Blues have been at their finest on the road during the Stanley Cup winning five of six times. They have been idle since Tuesday while the Sharks didn't clinch their series against the Avalanche until a 3-2 Game 7 victory this past Wednesday.

St. Louis is the better defensive team and has the superior goalie. I can definitely see the Blues frustrating the Sharks here and coming away with a Game 1 victory. They are a much different type of foe than the Sharks have encountered so far in the postseason. St. Louis has won seven of the last eight times as an underdog.

Jordan Binnington continued his regular-season brillance into the playoffs posting a .922 save percentage during St. Louis' second-round series victory against Dallas. Binnington was 24-5-1 with five shutouts and a 1.89 GAA during the regular season. Sharks goalie Martin Jones has picked up his play lately, but isn't the equal of Binnington.

The Blues are 18-8 the past 26 times versus foes with a winning record. They haven't been bothered by Pacific Division opponents either beating them seven of the past nine times.