St. Louis Blues vs. Minnesota Wild betting preview: Odds and best bets

One of the most highly anticipated series of the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs is the matchup between the St. Louis Blues and Minnesota Wild.

This series will feature two of the most explosive offenses and teams that have been piling up wins at the right time.

St. Louis vs. Minnesota Betting Odds: Game 1

Puckline: STL +1.5 (-200) | MIN -1.5 (+170) Over/under: Over 6.5 (+100) | Under 6.5 (-120) Moneyline: STL +115 | MIN -135

The Wild won home ice in the last week of the regular season and will play host to begin the series Monday night. Puck drop is set for 9:37 p.m. ET on Monday night.

Previous Matchups this Season

The Blues and Wild have met three times this year, with St. Louis winning all three. While St. Louis has had Minnesota's number in the win column, all three games were close, with the two most recent both reaching overtime.

The season series began with the Winter Classic on New Year's Day, a game that saw St. Louis win 6-4. They went to the third up 6-2, with Minnesota netting two in the final frame.

These teams' two most recent games were both just a few weeks ago, with these games providing us a reliable baseline of what to expect as this playoff series begins.

Both games went to OT, with the Blues winning 4-3 and 6-5.

How to Bet on Game 1

The expectation here is that at some point, Minnesota should be able to take some wins from St. Louis. This series feels like the most likely one to reach a seventh game.

Instead of projecting a winner from Game 1 for our best bet, the better strategy would be to target scoring.

Look at those totals from the three games above. On average, these games have finished with 9.33 total goals scored.

Monday night's over/under is set at 6.5, at even-money to go over on DraftKings. Yes, playoff hockey is notorious for tightening up in the scoring department, but this feels like the exception.

In Monday's location, both teams have been pouring in goals. The Blues are averaging 5.0 goals per game in their past 10 on the road while Minnesota is averaging 4.5 goals at home in their last 10 home games.

We'll back these offenses and past history for our betting approach Monday night.

Betting: Over 6.5 goals scored (+100 DK)