Wednesday night features a Central Division showdown as the Predators skate into Dallas to tangle with the Stars. Let’s analyze this matchup and keep cashing our NHL picks!
Nashville Predators vs. Dallas Stars
Wednesday, February 9, 2022 – 8:00 PM EST at American Airlines Center
Both teams will be well-rested entering this matchup, having enjoyed over a week of rest and relaxation due to the All-Star break. When last we saw the Predators, they were skating to a 4-2 victory over the Canucks, having won four of their last five contests.
Ryan Johansen netted his 13th goal of the season to even the score 1-1 in the opening frame while Filip Forsberg scored the next two, his 23rd and 24th of the season, with the latter coming on the power play. Tanner Jeannot would put the game on ice late in the final period with his 14th of the season while goaltender, Juuse Saros, turned in a fine performance, stopping 30 of 32 shots and earning the 100th NHL win of his career.
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“It’s pretty cool,” Saros said. “You don’t really think about those things growing up, you just try to make it to the NHL. I’ve obviously played with a lot of good guys and good teams, so they’ve helped me get to that number.”
“It’s a great feather in his cap to get the 100 wins, and I think it’s great for the organization that you have a guy like him that’s your lead dog in net,” Predators coach John Hynes said.
Saros has the most starts (38) and the most saves (1,122) of any goalie this season while boasting a 2.35 goals-against average and a .927 save percentage. He was also named to his first All-Star game and backstopped the Central Division to a win over the Atlantic before they fell to the Metropolitan Division in the finale.
Flames Dim Stars
Entering their last game before the All-Star break, the Stars had racked up five wins over their last six games. Dallas was ever so slight underdogs when they faced off against the Calgary Flames at the American Airlines Center.
The Flames drew first blood early in the first period but the Stars countered with three consecutive goals by Joel Hanley, Jason Robertson, and Jamie Benn giving Dallas a 3-1 lead entering the final stanza. But that was all she wrote, as the Flames roared back in the third period with three consecutive goals of their own, claiming a 4-3 victory over the Stars.
Calgary outshot Dallas, 40-28, and the Stars’ goalie, Jake Oettinger, saved 36 of 40 shots but took the hard-fought loss. Dallas was held to only five third-period shots while the Flames were busy lighting the lamp.
“I thought we were lucky to be up 3-1,” Dallas coach Rick Bowness said. "It just carried over to the whole third period. They were in our zone the whole time.
“We beat ourselves today. The other team picked up the intensity, and we didn't.”
Wanna Make a Bet?
The early NHL odds on this matchup reveal the Stars as a -115-home favorite but I’m not so sure the oddsmakers have the right favorite. In fact, the Predators look like a pretty good bargain in this spot.
Neither team will have an advantage in terms of rest, as both have gotten plenty of it entering this contest, but we should note that Nashville has absolutely owned Dallas in this series recently. Although the teams have only met once this season, a 4-2 Predators’ victory on November 10th, Nashville has won six of their last seven meetings with Dallas.
The Preds also have a distinct advantage when on the power play as they rank seventh in the league, connecting on 25.2 percent of their man-advantaged opportunities, while Dallas’ penalty-killing unit ranks 25th, extinguishing 76 percent of the power plays they have faced.
As for the matchup in net, Dallas’ Braden Holtby has been dealing with a mild injury, causing him to miss the game against Calgary, but his 9-9-1 record, 2.76 GAA, and a .913 save percentage is rather pedestrian. Conversely, Juuse Saros is 24-11-3 and is coming off of his first All-Star appearance. He has been dazzling between the pipes this season and is another checkmark in Nashville’s column.
Of the six recent Nashville wins over Dallas, the Predators were installed as underdogs on all but one of those occasions, and in the other game, they were a pick. The oddsmakers keep making the same mistake and we are going to make them pay…again!
NHL Pick: Predators ML (-103) with Heritage Sports (visit our Heritage Sports Review)
*The line and/or odds on picks in this article might have moved since the content was commissioned. For updated line movements, visit BMR’s free betting odds product.
