Dallas Stars vs Vegas Golden Knights Game One Preview: Stars Battered by Kraken, Hoping for ‘Miracle on Ice’ Part II

The Dallas Stars (108 points) finished just three points in back of the Vegas Golden Knights (111 points) in the final NHL standings this season, but this match-up is more about playoff history than regular season success. In 2020, these two met up in the conference final with the Stars winning in five games in what was known as the bubble season. Current NHL playoff odds have the Golden Knights (+250) as the second favorite to win the Stanley Cup behind the Carolina Hurricanes (+200), the Stars are the third choice (+300) followed by the Florida Panthers (+335). Let’s touch on both teams followed by our prediction on the Golden Knights vs Stars Conference final odds.

Stars Must Jump Out Early, Overcome Harsher Road

This is the time of the postseason when you worry about fatigue. As much emphasis as we put on depth, it’s also important to understand where a team may be from a conditioning standpoint. There’s no better way to determine that than to simply know how many games sit took for each team to get to the conference finals.

Before arriving at T-Mobile Arena, the Stars have arguably had the hardest path. The Stars opened with a tough six-game series against the Minnesota Wild where they were down twice (1-0, 2-1) before storming back to win the final three games by a combined score of 11-3.

They went seven games with the Seattle Kraken who were 19 seconds away from being shutout (2-1). The Stars spent a total of 29 days dispatching their first two postseason opponents. By comparison, the Golden Knights beat the Winnipeg Jets in five and then Edmonton in six.

Those two wins were done in 27 total days while going on the road just five times compared to the Stars‘ six, seven if you count game one of this series. The two extra days off and three fewer road trips will favor the Knights if this series goes deep.

Vegas to Lean On Goaltending, Again

What an incredible job the combination of President George McPhee and General Manager Kelly McCrimmon have done this NHL season, and really every year since the Golden Knights became a franchise. This season the Golden Knights have used five different goaltenders to get to this point, the same amount they used when they went to the Stanley Cup Final in 2018.

You would think that at least one of them would have been below average, but surprisingly every last one of them has contributed. Game one starter, Adin Hill, was sitting behind Logan Thompson and Ron Lehner to start the season and maybe even behind Laurent Brossoit to start the season.

Through various injuries, Hil was able to play in 27 games in 2023, finishing with a 16-7-1 record with a 2.45 goals against and a .915 save percentage. Against the Edmonton Oilers, we saw most public talking heads picking Edmonton because it seemed inconceivable that Hill would be able to shut down the high-powered Oilers with no playoff experience.

No problem, the 27-year-old beat Edmonton in three of the four games the BC native started. We learned to trust these VGK goaltenders because even an off night can be covered up by a Knights team that will likely carry the play in game one. We conclude our Stars vs Golden Knights conference final odds preview by giving our official game one selection.

Oettinger is Not On Top of His Game

If Adin Hill vs Jake Oettinger was a regular season opening night match-up, Oettinger would be the obvious favorite. However, betting is about recent form, and if that’s your barometer, Hill would be the better of the two. Oettinger was pulled early in game six against Seattle after allowing four goals in just over 23 minutes of work.

In his last five games, the former Team USA goaltender has allowed 15 goals on just 108 shots (.720). In his career, the 24-year-old owns a 78-34-19 record but that’s washed down with an okay .916 save percentage and 2.42 goals against. Oettinger’s career quality save percentage is .595 but just .500 in the 2023 playoffs.

The win/loss record is great, but the numbers to support that record will not cut it in this series. Take Adin Hill and the Vegas Golden Knights in Game One. That does it for our Stars vs. Golden Knights Conference Final odds preview, we wish you all the best in the conference final.

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