Golden Knights vs. Stars Odds
| Golden Knights Odds | -108 |
| Stars Odds | -108 |
| Over/Under | 5 |
| Time | 8:30 p.m. ET |
| TV | ESPN+ |
| Odds via FanDuel. Get up-to-the-minute NHL Odds here. | |
The Vegas Golden Knights will head in to Dallas seeking another crucial win from the second leg of a tough road back-to-back, having squeaked out a win on Tuesday night in Colorado. Dallas will look to get their season moving in the right direction after a 4-1 defeat at the hands of the Blue Jackets on Monday night.
Neither team has come out of the gates strong, but who can we expect to show better tomorrow night and claim two important points?
Knights Enter Dallas With Big Injuries
Vegas have some very valid excuses for struggling out of the gate this year, skating without its captain and best player in Mark Stone, its best pure goal scorer in Max Pacioretty and the highly underrated Alex Tuch up front.
On the back end Vegas, continues to be without Alec Martinez and Zach Whitecloud, as well. These injuries have led to a 2-4 start, with just a 46.04 expected goals for percentage (xGF%) from a Knights team that regularly has excellent play-driving metrics.
Behind a great night from starting goaltender Robin Lehner on Tuesday, as well as some favorable bounces off the posts, Vegas did manage to put a halt to their four-game skid by beating an Avalanche team that was also without some key defensemen.
Any wins are good wins for the Knights right now, as they look to tread water without several of their best players, but I question how the Knights have been favored in all but one contest so far this season. With Laurent Brossoit likely to take the net tomorrow, Vegas being a slight favorite feels, again, unwarranted.
Stars Attack Yet To Get Going
Dallas has not been great in the early going, posting a 3-3 record and again struggling to score goals. To my eye, the Stars have not been as poor as their 44.46 xGF% suggests, though, and I expect this team to trend upwards with John Klingberg back in the lineup.
The Stars' inability to score is concerning since that was a consistent problem for most of last season. However, Dallas has been sound defensively, as per usual, and is coming off an embarrassing defeat Monday in Columbus. I think will make for a tough matchup for a depleted Vegas squad that is not offering much in terms of scoring ability at the moment.
Knights vs. Stars Pick
Fading Vegas has been very profitable in the early going of this season, as the Knights continue to be priced far too favorably considering the crucial pieces currently sidelined. For me, that trend appears to be continuing on Wednesday night, as the Golden Knights look overvalued priced as slight favorites against a strong Stars team.
The Knights will be playing the second leg of a back-to-back situation, short the aforementioned pieces (at a minimum Stone, Pacioretty, Tuch and Whitecloud) but possibly more, all with Brossoit likely between the pipes.
The Stars themselves haven't been great in the early going, but I feel that this sets up well as a get-right spot on home ice, and that Dallas has been undervalued and is due to trend past the .500 mark this season.
Pick: Dallas -108 (Play to -130)
