Toronto @ St. Louis (7pm ET)

The Leafs head into St. Louis finish their current "week of death" 4 game road trip. They have scored a grand total of 1 goals on the trip thus far and continue to plummet in the East standings (10^th). I originally predicted the Leafs would go winless on this current road trip and nothing has changed my mind… so I almost have to take the Blues here. I just don't see how the Leafs can compete with the Blues or any team for that matter at the moment. The Blues are coming off an OT lose to the Red Wings but they currently boast a 16-4-2 record at home and are 6-3-1 in their last 10. I can't see St. Louis dropping two in a row at home, especially to the Maple Laughs. Give me the Blues here as they are just way too deep for the Leafs and are catching them while they're down and out.

Game Notes: Leafs have only scored 1 goal in their last 3 games… and that was from Roman Polak.

Key Stat: Maple Leafs are 4-10 in the last 14 meetings.

Pick: St. Louis – Home Team Win– H+

Nashville @ Detroit (7pm ET)

The Predators begin life without stud net minder Pekka Rinne. Now normally one player does not make a team, but in this case I'm not quite sure. Rinne has been lights out this season regaining his elite form from several seasons ago. 29 wins have come through Rinne… absolutely absurd at this point in the season. Guess how many wins the Preds have? 29. So it's safe to say that losing Rinne will definitely have a major impact. However, we can't forget that the Predators are still a solid team and they traditionally play the Red Wings really well. Detroit on the other hand is 7-3 in their last 10 games and seem to be doing fine without their star net minder Jimmy Howard, who is also out with injury. I like the Red Wings here for three reasons: First, Nashville is on the tail end of a B2B in which they played their former coach. Second, the Predators will be on the road where they are much less potent as they are 17-2-1 in Nashville. Third, the Predators will be without their best player and I think this will be the deciding factor here. No Rinne, no party.

Game Notes: Pekka Rinne will be out for the next 3-5 weeks with a sprained knee.  

Key Stat: Home team is 5-2 in the last 7 meetings.

Pick: Detroit – Home Team Win – H

Arizona @ Minnesota (9pm ET)

The Wild come into this matchup on a high after plowing the Sabres 7 – 0 on Thursday night. Devan Dubnyk made his Wild debut in cool fashion by posting an 18 save shutout. The Wild coasted for much of the evening and thoroughly dominated the game by outshooting the Sabres 37-18. Life without Dubnyk for the Yotes began on Thursday night… and Smith once again put up a stinker allowing 3 goals on 24 shots in a 4 – 1 lose versus the Flames. The Wild are much better than where they currently sit in the West standings (12^th). Goaltending has been the main reason why the Wild have had such a letdown season. However, I believe the Wild are turning a corner and are about to go on a little bit of a run. The Wild are tough to play at home and the Yotes will be overwhelmed in this tilt. Both goalies will be super motivated to play, for obvious reasons… but the Wild are simply the better team and can't afford to drop points here.

Game Notes: Ryan Suter will be out serving the 2^nd game of a 2 game suspension.

Key Stat: Coyotes are 0 – 4 in the last 4 meetings

Pick: Minnesota – Home Team Win– H

Good luck to all of you! If you want some late game action, the Sharks are also a nice play as Joni Ortio is set to start for the Flames… have a great weekend and #GETTHATMONEY

Jonathan Coretti (Follow me @HolyPuckHockey)