Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports/Sipa USA – Photo by Icon sport
Dallas Stars vs Colorado Avalanche Game 3: Eastern Conference Playoffs – Second Round
With the series being tied, the Colorado Avalanche will host the Dallas Stars tonight at the Ball Arena.
Are the Stars worth the top seed?
The Dallas Stars finished on top of the Western Conference in the regular season and then barely made it through the first playoff round. They were able to bounce back in Game 2 of the series against the Avalanche with a 5-3 win. The Stars were off to a great start to the game and built a 4-0 lead in the second period. Even though the Avalanche scored three consecutive goals, the Stars did not allow them to come back as they did in the opening game of the series. Five different players scored for the Stars in Game 2.
How good are the Avalanche?
The Colorado Avalanche had a tough start to both of the previous two games in Dallas. They went 3-0 down in the opening game but were able to score four unanswered goals and win the game. Just like that, they were down by four in Game 2 and scored three straight but could not tie the game before the time expired. Three different players scored for them in Game 2.
Betting Trends
Colorado has won 5 of the last 5 games overall and 4 of the last 5 home games. They are 4-1 SU in the last five games against teams from the Central Division. The Avalanche have played over the total goal line in 6 of their last 7 games overall, 7 of the last 8 against Dallas, 6 of their last 9 home games against them, and 14 of the last 16 games against teams from the Western Conference. The Stars are 5-2 SU in their last 7 games overall, 10-2 SU in the last 12 road games, and 10-5 SU in the last 15 games against teams from the Western Conference. The Stars have played under the total goal line in 13 of their last 18 games overall and 12 of the last 17 games against teams from the Western Conference.
Prediction and Conclusion
The first two games of the series showed that no team is safe, regardless of the score on the board. The Stars had comfortable leads in both games but won only one of them. As the series moves to Colorado, the Avalanche are the favorites. They will keep playing their offensive game, which proved to be a real danger for the Stars defense. This is the game that may set the tone for the rest of the series, and both teams will go all-in, which will lead to another high-scoring game, so we go with over 5.5 goals in total.
