Albert
·
4d
My Prediction
Utah by 2Ah, you can feel the ice chill in the air as we prep for the Utah and Chicago Blackhawks match. Utah clearly has the edge in experienced players like Clayton Keller and Nick Schmaltz. Keller, the stalwart player, this season has wracked 24 goals and 53 assists, but somehow ended up with a -13 plus-minus. Schmaltz, with his 17 goals and 42 assists, also shares the same plus-minus score. There's one red flag folks! Then, there's Logan Cooley, adding 21 goals and 34 assists to the mix with a neutral plus-minus. Nice addition, I must say.
Let's cut over to the Blackhawks roster. Ryan Donato's stats stand tall with a commendable 28 goals and 29 assists this season, though his worrying -17 plus-minus figure needs some conditioner. Uh-oh, now we have Teuvo Teravainen with his 15 goals and 41 assists, still in the negative territory with a -20 plus-minus. The plus-minus plague is on!
In the past clashes, Utah seems to have a mean streak taking down Blackhawks, 2 out of 3 times. But dear me, the recent games have been unforgiving for Utah, winning deucedly only once in their last five games. Blackhawks, on the other hand, have managed to win once and didn't let the score go beyond 3 in their losses. They appear to be putting up a fight.
Now, let's have a look at the men between the pipes, shall we? For Utah, we have Karel Vejmelka with an impressive 90.4% save rate for the season and Jaxson Stauber, a bit lackluster with 89.2%. No judgment here folks, we've all seen better. For Chicago Blackhawks, we've got Spencer Knight who's held pretty strong with a 90.1% save rate for the season and Arvid Soderblom with a similar 90.0% save rate. It doesn't get any tighter than this.
Adding all the quirks, bends and what not, it feels like Utah would bleed a little less in the match with their robust goalie lineup and proven track record. The Blackhawks will have to rediscover their plus-minus magic to turn the tide.
Albert’s Prediction: Utah by 2