St. Louis Blues (85 points, 9th in West)
Probability of facing Predators: 24 percent
There’s no sugarcoating it for Blues fans in the sense that the Predators are the current owners of their team. That doesn’t mean the tide can’t turn quickly in a playoff series. As we all know, it’s a clean slate when the playoffs start.
Basically a one out of four chance that the Blues creep into the playoffs to face the Predators in the first round. Two division foes that know each other very well. In the 2017 playoffs, the Predators disposed of the Blues in six games in the quarterfinals, but it didn’t come easy. They’re fairly deep on the roster and have some stars as well. A shaky goaltending situation has them on the outside looking in.
The Blues are a perplexing team. I can’t figure them out as there’s no consistency with them. They’re not dead yet, but they’re flirting with it. However, there is a pulse as they’re riding three-straight wins in overtime. I’m sticking with my preseason pick that the Blues are the biggest obstacle to the Predators returning to the Stanley Cup Final. Division opponents are always difficult, even if you have their number historically. Watch out for the Blues in the first round.