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Nearing the halfway mark of the NHL season, the Dallas Stars and Los Angeles Kings will put their successful ways to the test as they prepare for war on Tuesday evening. It is time to take an exclusive look at our NHL odds series where our Stars-Kings prediction and pick will be revealed!
Winners of their last four games overall, the Stars find themselves at the top of the Central Division standings with 52 points after compiling a 23-9-6 record through 38 games. Certainly, the Stars have looked like legitimate contenders and are not to be overlooked at this stage of the season.
Believe it or not, but even the Kings have looked like a playoff contender up to this point. In fact, their 21-13-6 record has catapulted them into the second place spot within the Pacific Division Standing, and also only sit four points behind the Golden Knights for first. After winning back-to-back games in a row, the Kings lost in crushing fashion against the Flyers in a 4-2 loss at home.
Here are the Stars-Kings NHL odds, courtesy of FanDuel
NHL Odds: Stars-Kings Odds
Dallas Stars: -1.5 (+198)
Los Angeles Kings: +1.5 (-250)
Over: 6 (-110)
Under: 6 (-110)
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Why The Stars Could Cover The Spread
Displaying their top-of-the-brand of hockey thus far, Dallas is arguably a force to be reckoned with in the wild, wild, Western Conference. Flashing back to last season, the Stars were bested by the Calgary Flames in the first round of the postseason and have used that shortcoming to come out on fire during the first half of the season.
When it comes to figuring out a way to cover the spread against a competitive team like the Kings, Dallas' room for error will be more slim than usual. To begin, can Dallas continue on with their scorching success rate while on the power play? While they have won a season-high four consecutive games in a row, the Stars have gone 8-17 with the extra-man advantage during that span and have done a phenomenal job in capitalizing off of other team's mistakes. Equally important, the Stars have now seen their power-play efficiency move to second place in all of hockey with a 28.8 percentage.
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Alas, while scoring in timely fashion will take this team a long way on Tuesday, Dallas' odds of covering the spread would feel even more comfortable if they can garner some contributions from an unlikely hero in Mira Heiskanen. The 23-year-old defenseman and former first-round pick from the 2017 draft, Heiskanen is quickly becoming a great two-way threat while out on the ice. Not only does he play lockdown defense, but he has improved upon his offensive play when occupying the puck on the blue line and has recorded 29 points in the still-young season.
As it stands, not many goalies are playing as well as Jake Oettinger who possesses top-ten marks in save percentage and goals allowed. If Oettinger stands on his head like he is capable of, then it may spell game over for Los Angeles.
Why The Kings Could Cover The Spread
Trailing the Stars by only a few points, the Kings are excited to try to make a statement to the rest of the Western Conference, and the entire league for that matter that they are here to stay. While the Kings won't have the services of names like Trevor Moore or Arthur Kaliyev, they will still be graced with the presence of a possible up-and-coming star that has plenty of skill with his stick. Introducing Quinton Byfield, who is three games into his second stint with the Kings after being selected by LA with the second-overall pick in the 2020 NHL Draft. A big-bodied center towering at 6'4″, there is no doubt that Byfield could end up being a major X-Factor ahead of tonight's duel.
Offensively, the Kings should not be overly concerned, but slowing down the Stars may prove to be a challenging task. At first glance, the Kings give up a whopping 3.43 goals per contest and have yet to truly come together in an effective matter on that side of the ice. Nevertheless, LA has been getting outstanding play from goalie Pheonix Copley as the Kings are 8-1 whenever he gets the start in net. Although he has surrendered nine goals in his previous three outings, he may serve as LA's best option in goal. Conversely, he needs to snap out of his mini-funk to stymie the Stars just enough to leave the door open for the Kings to pounce in lethal fashion.
Final Stars-Kings Prediction & Pick
Without a doubt, this one has the makings of being one of the best hockey games on this Tuesday's scheduled slate, but it will be the Stars that pot an empty-netter to go up by two goals late in a nail-biting finish.
Final Stars-Kings Prediction & Pick: Stars -1.5 (+198)
How To Watch Stars vs. Kings
TV: ESPN
Stream: ESPN App
Time: 10:00 ET/7:00 PT
