Tuesday night means a loaded NHL slate with plenty of games to choose from. Few hold more hype than matchup between the Edmonton Oilers and Dallas Stars, two foes intimately familiar with each other after meeting in the Western Conference Final during each of the last three postseasons. This rivalry has become one of the best in the sport, so be sure to tune in for this one at 8 p.m. EST as contenders go toe-to-toe once more.
Here’s an Oilers vs. Stars prediction and pick on DraftKings Sportsbook for Tuesday’s contest.
Oilers vs. Stars prediction, preview
These sides are well acquainted to an extreme degree after the Oilers downed the Stars in three consecutive playoff runs. Things look a little different now than last time they met with some minor tweaks to each roster, but the biggest change remains the man on the bench for Dallas — Glen Gulutzan spent the last several seasons on Edmonton’s bench as an assistant coach before heading to Texas for his second stint as the franchise’s bench boss. Now, he looks to get the Stars over the mountaintop and into the Stanley Cup Final, likely having to go through his old franchise to do it.
The Stars are 6-3-3 and have claimed at least a point in five straight matchups as they weather injuries to key players. Top-line center Roope Hintz and third-line forward Matt Duchene are both day-to-day, while third-pairing defenseman Nils Lundkvist hit LTIR last week. Surviving shorthanded is the goal for now, but the Dallas attack has slowed in their absence with just 2.67 GF/GP and 26.0 shots a night. The encouraging news is that Wyatt Johnston, Mikko Rantanen and Jason Robertson perform like the stars they are with 14, 11 and 10 points apiece while the power play hits at a 31.7% rate, third-best in the league. However, the Stars allow 2.92 GA/GP with a bottom-eight penalty kill (72.2%). The blue line hasn’t exactly played great hockey on a consistent basis despite the talent in Miro Heiskanen and Thomas Harley, and the team will also start Casey DeSmith in net with Jake Oettinger getting the day off after the birth of he and his wife’s child.
As for the Oilers, they’re 6-4-3 through the opening weeks and have historically maintained the edge over tonight’s opponent in past matchups. Their play in goal may not be the NHL’s best with Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard, but the stars at the top are certainly capable of carrying this team as usual. Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins pace the roster with 17, 16 and 13 points each, but Edmonton falls 18th in scoring with 3.15 GF/GP. However, they’re clearly outproducing Dallas at the moment, outshoot them with 29.3 shots a night, and also boast the league’s top power-play unit at 33.3%. The Oilers are also 10th in FOW%, but the penalty kill could still use some work at 80.7% while the blue line allows 3.08 GA/GP as well. Still, they allow the third-fewest shots against of any team and are somewhat healthier, though the absence of Zach Hyman and Mattias Janmark on IR absolutely hurts.
Oilers vs. Stars pick, best bet
DraftKings Sportsbook lists the Stars as -130 favorites on the Moneyline tonight, while the Oilers come in at +110. The total sits at 6.5 combined goals.
Games between these two sides tend to get physical, Gulutzan has been clear about his desire to make Dallas a more aggressive team on the boards after largely being out-hit in past postseason matchups. With an extra chip on their shoulders, the Stars should come out looking to land some checks on their rivals, though Edmonton’s players certainly won’t back down either. One area of note is that the Oilers are playing the second night of a back-to-back, so their legs may not be as fresh as the home team’s.
Both sides have plenty of talent with superstars at the top and depth throughout the remaining lines. The duel between each team’s top three forwards should prove incredibly fun, especially with Dallas recently shifting Robertson, Johnston and Rantanen all onto the same line together. However, the play of DeSmith in goal remains the X-factor as he enters with a 3.28 GAA and .873 SV%. McDavid and Draisaitl will test him early and often, as will the remainder of the players behind the star pairing. It’s tough to pick a winner, but the Stars typically start games slow, so Edmonton to lead at the end of the first period makes plenty of sense at plus odds.
