Chicago Blackhawks (29-23-6) @ St. Louis Blues (27-21-9)

Time: 2:00 pm EST

Our Prediction: St. Louis Blues 3-2

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Preview: Two long time rivals in the National Hockey League will get together at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis. The defending Stanley Cup Champion Chicago Blackhawks will take on the St. Louis Blues. Currently both teams are on the outside looking in as far as postseason chances.

The Blackhawks are tied in third in the Central Division, and tied for 11th overall in the Western Conference with 64 points. Just behind them, fifth in the Central Division and 13th overall is the St. Louis Blues. The Blues have 63 points; just 5 back of a postseason berth. Chicago is 3-5-2 in their last ten games, coming off a 4-3 loss on Friday to the Columbus Blue Jackets. The Blackhawks host Pittsburgh on Sunday, so will be playing in back-to-back affairs. Chicago ranks as the fifth highest scoring team in the NHL, with 3.1 goals per game. Patrick Sharp leads the charge for the Blackhawks, with 30 goals and 22 assists.

Ty Conklin turned away 25 shots from the Buffalo Sabres on Friday night leading the Blues to a 3-0 win. The win for Conklin came just one day after starting goaltender Jaroslav Halak was placed on the injured reserve, and Conklin was given the nod as starting goaltender.

T.J. Oshie recorded his first two point game since returning to action after missing 30+ goals. Oshie scored a goal and added an assist. The other two goals for St. Louis came from David Backes and Vladimir Sobotka.

The Blues are now 4-2-1 in their last 7 games, but remain 13th in the Western Conference. St. Louis, with 61 trails a crew of four teams with 68 points. Buffalo remained four points behind Carolina for the final postseason berth in the Eastern Conference.

The St. Louis Blues shipped defensemen Eric Brewer to the Tampa Bay Lightning on Friday. Brewer cited a chance to make the postseason as a reason for dropping his no-trade clause with the team.

Brewer was in his final year of a 4 year $17 million contract with the Blues. The 31 year old defensemen played in 332 games with the Blues during his six seasons. St. Louis saw him score 8 goals and dish out 6 assists during the season.

St. Louis came into Friday night’s game at Buffalo in 13th place in the Western Conference. The Blues are nine points behind the 8th seeded Los Angeles Kings. Tampa Bay leads the Southeast Division, and have a shot at contending for the Eastern Conference title.

Dallas Stars (31-21-6) @ Vancouver Canucks (37-13-9)

Time: 10:00 pm EST

Our Prediction: Vancouver Canucks 5-3

Expert Picks: Available Here!

Preview: The eighth seeded Dallas Stars will take on the top seeded Vancouver Canucks on Saturday night.

If the postseason started today, in the Western Conference this would be a first round playoff game. The Stars are barely holding on, as they are tied with four teams with 68 points. Dallas has lost three straight games, with their most recent coming to Calgary on Wednesday night. The Stars have seen Brad Richards put together a fine season, as he leads in both goals scored (24) and assists (39), for a total of 63 points. Dallas is scoring 2.7 goals per game, and allowing 2.8. Goaltender Andrew Raycroft has been up and down all season, and currently sits with a 2.57 goals against average.