Stars Heavily Favored
The Dallas Stars look to sweep the series with the Arizona Coyotes on Friday night and if the NHL odds were any indication, the oddsmakers fancy their chances — in a big way.
The Stars and Coyotes are heading in opposite directions. The Stars are mired in the Western Conference battle for playoff seeding while the Coyotes, already eliminated from the postseason frame, have little to play for except to be real spoilers.
Read on as we weigh in on this matchup, complete with the latest NHL betting odds, and serve up choice NHL picks for your consideration.
Stars Aiming High
Dallas is 40-20-14 on the season with 94 points from 74 games played. They are second in the Central Division standings, three points shy of the division leaders, the Minnesota Wild, and tied with the defending Stanley Cup champions the Colorado Avalanche (also with 94 pts).
Most recently, the Stars improved to a 6-3-1 record in their last 10 games, bouncing back into the win column at the expense of the woeful Chicago Blackhawks. The Stars came through for their backers as the runaway road favorites at the sportsbook exchange. It marked their second-straight road win after beating the Calgary Flames 6-5 last week.
The Stars outshot the Blackhawks 33 to 18 and outhit them 23 to 8, all while winning almost 58% of the face-offs. Tyler Seguin, Collin Miller, Joe Pavelski and Luke Glendening each scored for the Stars.
Goalie Jake Oettinger was solid between the posts as well, saving 17 of 18 shots for a .944 save percentage. He improved to 32-10-11 on the season with a 2.47 goals against average and a .918 save percentage.
Dallas Stars is scoring an average of 3.39 goals per game and conceding 2.73 goals per game. The power play is 23.2% while the penalty kill is 83.6% effective.
“That’s Mr. Game Winner, Colin Miller”- Tyler Seguin@trulyseltzer | #TexasHockey pic.twitter.com/3qtdLRIZ3P
— Dallas Stars (@DallasStars) March 29, 2023
Coyotes Eliminated
With seven games still to play before the end of the regular season, Arizona is out of the playoff picture after putting together a 27-35-13 record and 67 points through 75 games. The bulk of the Coyotes’ wins has come at home this season, where they are a solid 20-12-4. What has let them down is road form, which stands at 7-23-9.
That said, recent form is discouraging as the Coyotes have lost five in a row, including back-to-back losses at home to the Colorado Avalanche and Edmonton Oilers. The Coyotes competed well in both of these, but they fell short of the mark in a 4-3 shootout loss to the Avs and a 5-4 loss to the Oilers.
On Monday, the Coyotes gave the Oilers a run for their money in a back-and-forth affair. They twice led in the game before the Oilers leveled the score. In the third period, with Edmonton up 4-2, the Coyotes stormed back to tie the game at 4-4. However, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins gave the Oilers the go-ahead goal at 12:06 and the visitors held on to win the game.
ryan nugent-hopkins makes it 5-4. pic.twitter.com/qIoZsRltfu
— zach (@zjlaing) March 28, 2023
Stars vs Coyotes Game Injuries
Stars vs Coyotes Head-to-Head
Dallas has dominated this matchup in recent years, taking a 7-2-1 edge in the last 10 games. Arizona is 3-7-0 during this stretch, while the betting online total has gone 3-5-1.
The Stars are riding a three-game winning streak versus the Coyotes this season. They opened this four-game series with a 7-2 win in Arizona on Nov. 2022. Then, they shut them out 4-0 on Jan. 21 at the American Airlines Center. On Mar. 1, they took the third-straight win behind a 4-2 decision in Dallas.
Stars vs Coyotes Game Information
- Game: Stars (40-20-14) vs Coyotes (27-35-13)
- Location: New Tempe Arena, Tempe, AZ
- Day/Time: Friday, March 31, 10:37 p.m. ET
- Stars vs Coyotes Live Stream: NHL.TV
Stars vs Coyotes Betting Lines
Stars vs Coyotes Picks and Prediction
Although the Coyotes are going nowhere this season, except to the nearest golf course when the book closes on the 2022-23 NHL season, they’re still playing hard. Especially at home where they’ve had most of their success.
Dallas might be the firm favorite and the smart bet to win this game as per the sports betting markets, but the Coyotes won’t roll over and just give it to them. For that reason, there is value in Arizona on the puck line to keep this game close.
Dallas is listed at -245 in our Vegas NHL lines. So, if you wager $100 on the Stars, there’s a chance to win $41. Arizona is +205, with a chance to win $205 on a $100 wager. The implied probability attached to the betting lines gives Dallas a 71.01% chance to win, with the Coyotes at 32.79%.