Welcome back to another edition of NHL Predictions here at Last Word on Hockey, where we provide analysis, insights, and predictions for upcoming NHL games. Tonight, the St. Louis Blues play the first of two back-to-back games as they take on the Carolina Hurricanes. 

NHL Predictions: March 12th St. Louis Blues vs Carolina Hurricanes

Time: 7:00 PM Eastern Daylight Time
How to Watch TV: FDSNMW, FDSNSO
2025-2026 Season Series: 1-0-0
Location: Lenovo Center in Raleigh, North Carolina 

Almost two months ago to the day, the St. Louis Blues shut out these Carolina Hurricanes 3-0 on home ice. Tonight, the Blues are also putting a four-game road winning streak on the line. They sport a 5-1-1 record since returning from the Olympics, but only have 18 games remaining. There is no way the Blues can make a third improbable run to the postseason… right?
One question that has to be floating around the Carolina hockey market is: If not now, when? The two-time defending champion Florida Panthers are on the brink of missing out. The Buffalo Sabres are phenomenal but lack playoff experience. Rod Brind’Amour has led the Hurricanes to seven straight playoff appearances. A deep run feels imminent for Carolina this year.
If the Blues want to gain traction and make the stretch run interesting, the Hurricanes are not the team they want to play. Carolina is 8-2 in their last ten games. To make the task more difficult, the Hurricanes are an astounding 24-8-2 on home ice. All signs are indicating that the road to the Stanley Cup in the Eastern Conference runs through Raleigh, North Carolina.

Bounce Back Blues

St. Louis has points in six of their last seven games. Where might this team be with play like this back in November or December?  At the end of the day, the future of the Blues is here now. Jimmy Snuggerud, Robert Thomas, and Dylan Holloway have been incredible since Thomas returned to play in Minnesota. Tuesday night, Snuggerud had a goal and two assists to give the Blues hope for a fifth straight win. The New York Islanders made sure that was not the case.
Franchise goaltender Jordan Binnington has been subjected to trade rumours and discussion all year. His counterpart Joel Hofer has stepped up to fill the void that Binnington’s poor play has left. He sports five shutouts, which puts him at second in the NHL. If Binnington’s future in St. Louis was in question after this year, it is safe to say that Hofer is the Blues official number one goaltender moving forward.
These next two games for the Blues are going to show a lot about their character. After blowing yet another lead on Tuesday, this young group will have to find resiliency. How they play tonight will show if this team truly believes they can make a run at the playoffs. Otherwise, they will just continue to play themselves out of contention for the first overall draft pick. 

Storm Surge

Carolina has shown no signs of slowing down this season. Playing at an 8-2 pace into the middle of March is a great sign. Brind’Amour’s Hurricanes are currently the third-best team in the NHL. All it would take is a stumble or two by Colorado and Dallas, and the President’s Trophy for best team in the regular season could make its way to the Lenovo Center. 

Finnish Olympian Sebastian Aho leads the Hurricanes with 66 points in 64 games. Seth Jarvis leads the team in goals with 28. They would be nowhere near the top of the league if they did not have netminder Brandon Bussi. Bussi was claimed off waivers from the Florida Panthers in October. He went on to post a 23-3-1 record before the Olympic Break. This record-breaking play was awarded a three-year contract extension. 

The ingredients are there for the Hurricanes to bring their second Stanley Cup to North Carolina. The scoring is coming by committee. The defence and goaltending keep the puck out of the net. The most terrifying thing about the NHL playoffs is that anything can happen. If the season ended today, Carolina would face the Boston Bruins. The very same Boston Bruins that kept them from the Stanley Cup Final in the 2018-2019 season. 

NHL Predictions:

The Carolina Hurricanes are a fantastic hockey club. They are experienced, well-coached, and play to their identity. The Blues, on the other hand, are certainly well coached. But with a few veterans remaining and no identity to play to, their struggles will continue.

Carolina is coming off a tough battle against the Penguins. The young Blues will need to forget the memory of Tuesday’s gut-punching loss quickly. Otherwise, this powerful Hurricanes team is going to grab the lead and not let go. 

NHL Prediction: Hurricanes win 5-2.

Prop Bets:

The over/under for this game is set at 6.5 goals. With a predicted seven total goals, we are taking the over at +110. Dylan Holloway has been great for the Blues since his return, so we will take him with a goal at +300. Seth Jarvis has emerged as a consistent goal scorer across the National Hockey League. We will take him with a goal tonight at +150 

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Main Photo: Joe Puetz-Imagn Images