San Jose Sharks vs St Louis Blues Final — October 8, 2026
SJStarting goaliesSTL
SJOffenseFull 2025-26 regular season (last season)STLSJDefenseSTLSJTeamSTLSJ5-on-5STLSJSpecial teamsSTLSJRecent formSTLSJHome and roadseason to dateSTLInjuries & restkey injuries · rest and travel
SJRest & travelSTLSJKey injuriesSTLAbout these numbers
Goalie status from the G&W goalie tracker (Confirmed, Expected, Likely or Not confirmed); teams confirm starters close to puck drop. Season lines come from the NHL Lab goalie tables. GSAx = goals saved above expected (Gridiron & Wine expected goals). HD Sv% = save rate on high-danger shots.
Full 2025-26 regular season (last season), captured before kickoff. League rank in small type (32 teams); the gold side ranks higher. Bars show rank, longest = 1st. Source: Gridiron & Wine public Analytics tables.
2025-26 regular season, public NHL Lab tables; ranks out of 32 teams. Expected goals are Gridiron & Wine's own expected-goals numbers.
2025-26 regular season. Rates are per 60 minutes of power-play or penalty-kill time.
Regular-season results this season, oldest to newest (OTL = overtime or shootout loss). Records are season to date, with home and road splits. Over–under uses the consensus closing total.
Distance is straight-line from each team's home arena; time-zone change is at game time. Rest counts days since each team's previous game.
No key players listed.
Key players only. Injury report as of October 8, 6:40 p.m. ET.
The pre-game matchup
The Sharks (2-1-0) visited the Blues (1-2-0) on Thursday, October 8 at 8:10 PM ET.
Last season (2025-26), the Sharks scored 3.06 goals per game (18th of 32) and allowed 3.56 (30th). The Blues scored 2.82 goals per game (25th of 32) and allowed 3.15 (19th). The Sharks earned 52.4% of available standings points (22nd) and the Blues 52.4% (22nd).
Expected-goals share (5-on-5), the share of 5-on-5 expected goals created: Sharks 47.4% (26th), Blues 49.5% (19th). Shot-attempt share (5-on-5), the share of all 5-on-5 shot attempts: Sharks 46.9% (28th), Blues 48.2% (25th). High-danger chance share, the share of 5-on-5 high-danger chances: Sharks 54.7% (7th), Blues 45.4% (27th). These are last season's full-season numbers because the new season's sample is still small; rosters change over the offseason.
The total closed 5.5, unchanged from the open. After removing the vig, the closing moneyline (Sharks +135, Blues -162) prices the Sharks at 41% and the Blues at 59%.
Written from the numbers available before kickoff.
Result
Final score and result vs the closing line
San Jose Sharks 3, St Louis Blues 2
San Jose Sharks won by 1.
- Against the closing spread (St Louis Blues -1.5): San Jose Sharks covered.
- Combined score 5 vs the closing total of 5.5: Under.
- San Jose Sharks closed at +135 on the moneyline (a 41% no-vig market-implied chance).
Actual result
St Louis Blues 2
Before the game: market and G&W
From open to close the market moved 7 points toward St Louis Blues.
Market numbers are the consensus moneyline with the bookmaker margin removed.
Win probability
Each team's chance of winning through the game, starting from the market's closing price (San Jose Sharks 41%, St Louis Blues 59%) and moving with every goal, penalty and the clock until the final.
Biggest swings
- 3rd 1:39 — St Louis Blues goal (1-2)St Louis Blues 55% → 80% (+25 pts)
- 3rd 6:05 — San Jose Sharks goal (2-2)San Jose Sharks 17% → 45% (+28 pts)
- OT 1:03 — San Jose Sharks goal (3-2)San Jose Sharks 47% → 100% (+53 pts)
San Jose Sharks won after falling as low as 17% (3rd 6:05).
Chance Quality Result
Based on the quality of chances each team created, St Louis Blues won 66% of G&W replays (San Jose Sharks 34%). The result went the other way from the chances each team created.
The Chance Quality Result describes the chances each team created. It is not the official result and never changes it or any record. Expected goals count regulation chances with both goalies in net; empty-net goals are not included. Season xG tables count every game state, empty nets included, so their totals differ.
Game DNA
The Chance Quality Result above favoured St Louis Blues. Here is where that came from.
| Sharks | Goals | Blues |
|---|---|---|
| 1.7 | 5-on-5 chancesexpected goals | 2.7 |
| 0.4 | Power-play chancesexpected goals | 0.1 |
| 0.0 | Other situations4-on-4, 3-on-3, short-handed | 0.4 |
| 2.1 | Chance Quality Result chancesthe three rows above, as in the result | 3.2 |
| 0.1 | Overtime and pulled-goalie chancesnot part of the Chance Quality Result | 0.1 |
| 0.2 | Second chancesrebounds and flurries, part of the above | 0.5 |
| +0.8 | Finishinggoals vs expected on own shots | -1.3 |
| +1.3 | Goaltendingsaves vs expected · Alex Nedeljkovic 24/26 · Joel Hofer 24/27 | -0.8 |
How the margin was built, from San Jose Sharks's side:
The first three rows add up to the Chance Quality Result's expected goals. Overtime chances and chances with a goalie pulled are listed on their own, and empty-net goals are not in expected goals. A team's finishing and the other team's goaltending are the same goals seen from each end.
Line review
St Louis Blues closed as the market favourite at 59% and lost.
The line moved toward St Louis Blues before puck drop, and they lost.
Market
Closing line and line movement
Sharks +1.5 (-250)
Sharks +1.5 (-191)
Blues -120 52%
Blues -162 59%
Consensus of US sportsbooks. Open = first line after both teams' previous games; Close = consensus at kickoff. Percentages are the moneyline's no-vig market-implied chances.
Members
G&W Line
G&W’s own number for this game, next to the market. Analytics
Matchup
Head-to-head
The teams have met 28 times since 2018-19: the Sharks won 10 and the Blues 18.
| Date | Score | Line | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 30, 2026 | Blues 4, Sharks 5 Sharks won | ||
| Mar 26, 2026 | Sharks 1, Blues 2 OT Blues won | Blues -130 favorite won | 6 under |
| Mar 6, 2026 | Blues 3, Sharks 2 OT Blues won | Sharks -145 underdog won | 6.5 under |
| Dec 12, 2024 | Sharks 4, Blues 3 Sharks won | Blues -180 underdog won | 5.5 over |
| Nov 21, 2024 | Sharks 2, Blues 3 SO Blues won | Blues -220 favorite won | 6 under |
Regular-season meetings since 2018-19, most recent first. Line = consensus closing moneyline favorite and total where line history is available.
Teams
San Jose Sharks
- San Jose Sharks team stats
- Buffalo Sabres 2, San Jose Sharks 0 (Oct 27)
- San Jose Sharks 4, Boston Bruins 6 (Oct 24)
- San Jose Sharks 6, Ottawa Senators 2 (Oct 22)
St Louis Blues
More NHL games on October 8, 2026
- Utah Mammoth 1, Boston Bruins 6 (Oct 8)
- Dallas Stars 4, Buffalo Sabres 0 (Oct 8)
- Vancouver Canucks 2, Carolina Hurricanes 7 (Oct 8)
- Nashville Predators 5, Montréal Canadiens 2 (Oct 8)
- Philadelphia Flyers 1, Ottawa Senators 2 (Oct 8)
- Minnesota Wild 2, Tampa Bay Lightning 3 (Oct 8)
- Chicago Blackhawks 1, New York Islanders 4 (Oct 8)
- Colorado Avalanche 7, Calgary Flames 3 (Oct 8)
- Toronto Maple Leafs 3, Vegas Golden Knights 4 (Oct 8)
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