Two years removed from the franchise’s last and only Stanley Cup Final victory, the St. Louis Blues head into the 2021 NHL season as viable contenders to take back the Cup.
Legal online sportsbooks all list St. Louis among the frontrunners to win the Western Conference in their latest NHL futures.
You can’t legally wager on these platforms in Missouri, pending a potential legal change. However, crossing the Des Moines or Mississippi rivers into Illinois or Iowa will afford you the opportunity to net some winnings.
Including through wagers placed on the Blues.
Latest St. Louis Blues betting markets at IA, IL sportsbooks
A look at six of the most popular sports betting brands that operate in Illinois and/or Iowa reveals they all have St. Louis as a top-three contender among Western Conference teams to win Lord Stanley’s Cup this season.
Those books include:
- BetMGM
- BetRivers
- DraftKings
- FanDuel
- PointsBet
- William Hill
Note that of the six sportsbooks, only BetMGM doesn’t operate in Illinois. It does, however, have a betting app in Iowa.
The puck drops on the 2021 NHL campaign Wednesday. And the odds on St. Louis winning it all range from +1100 to +2000, depending on the sportsbook.
The Colorado Avalanche and Vegas Golden Knights both have shorter odds at all of the aforementioned books in this market. Colorado currently sits as the odds-on favorite. Unfortunately for the Blues faithful, both of those clubs are in St. Louis’ division due to the league’s recent realignment.
Other team, individual NHL futures betting
That isn’t the only futures market available. Depending on the book, you can also bet on:
- Team to win the West Division
- Over/Under total points for the season for the Blues
- Will St. Louis make the playoffs? Yes/No
- Which player will lead the Blues in goals on the season?
- Which player will lead St. Louis in points?
- Who will win the Art Ross, Calder, Hart, etc., trophies?
- Team to win the President’s Trophy
Four of the sportsbooks listed above have the line on the Blues’ points for the season at 70.5. PointsBet and William Hill, however, have dropped that down to 68.5. Mike Hoffman and Ryan O’Reilly are among the favorites to set the pace for St. Louis in goals and points.
If O’Reilly can produce on a team-leading level, the Blues just may play for the Stanley Cup for the second time in three seasons. St. Louis may rely on that contribution, as the team needs to replace the production of some key players from that last championship squad.
Handicapping the upcoming Blues season
Going into the season, the Blues have three big questions to answer.
First is the health of right wing Vladimir Tarasenko. In August, he underwent his third shoulder surgery in less than three years. If St. Louis is going to win its division and the Western Conference, it will need him to play more than the 10 games he was on the ice for last season.
The second question is how much the loss of former captain Alex Pietrangelo will hurt. O’Reilly is a top-flight center, and free-agent acquisition Torey Krug is capable. Regardless, it’s uncertain how well these new lines will perform together, at least initially, in front of the Blues’ goal.
That goal situation is perhaps the biggest question of all. With Jake Allen now in Montreal, St. Louis’ fate now rests in the gloves of Jordan Binnington. With little flexibility under the cap, the Blues don’t have much to make a move in goal if Binnington or backup Ville Husso falter.
With a schedule that pits them against the Stanley Cup favorites Colorado and Vegas 16 times, St. Louis will earn every point if it gets up over 70 in 2021. If things go well, Blues betting odds may appear to have underestimated St. Louis by a small margin.
