The first of the Western Conference Finals saw an epic comeback from the Stars to steal Game 1. The Oilers will have to regroup quickly because they do not want to be down 0-2. We’ll break down each team and look at the best NHL bets and picks for Game 2.
Friday’s NHL Best Bets & Picks: Oilers vs. Stars
(Odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook)
Edmonton Oilers (-102) at Dallas Stars (-118) | O/U 6.5 (+102/-122)
It's usually been the Oilers that have been staging comebacks during the playoffs, but was it their opposition that made the comeback to start the Western Conference Finals? The Stars were quiet in the first 40 minutes, but they blew the door open in the third with five goals. The big difference was their special teams as their power play unit broke a 0-14 slump they had against the Oilers in last year's WCF with three in the third. They were also able to crush the penalty kill, forcing the Oilers to go 0-3.
The Oilers are one of the fastest offenses with excellent passing, and that will need to be even better in Game 2 to create more scoring chances. The depth of this lineup needs to come through in order for the Oilers to have a chance. We know Leon Draisaitl and Connor McDavid are two of the best players in the game, but they cannot be the only two that count for the offense. There were seven different lineups for Edmonton in this game; Draisaitl was in three and McDavid in two, and their lines had the most even-strength scoring chances, especially when they were paired together. It'll be interesting to see how they divide the shifts in the matchup.
The Oilers certainly need a better performance from Stuart Skinner. He's already been benched once in the playoffs, but with the injury to Calvin Pickard, he's the guy they have to ride with. He's been very inconsistent, while he does have two shutouts in the playoffs, he's saved below 90% in each of his other starts. The blue line also needs to be better; they allowed six high-danger shots in Game 1, and they had only allowed 12 throughout the rest of the playoffs.
We saw a rare good performance from the Dallas defense. They allowed 27 shots on goal, four high-danger shots, and 17 blocks. They are still allowing 31.4 shots per game in the playoffs, and from March 17 to April 17, they were allowing a league-worst 35.3 shots per game. The return of Miro Heiskanen has played a large part, but it's tough to see them continuing that type of performance against an excellent offense.
Edmonton has done well at adjusting game by game, and if any team can come back after a devastating loss, they can.
Pick: Oilers Moneyline (-102)
