Dallas Stars vs. Seattle Kraken Series Betting Preview & Picks

The Central Division’s second-round matchup pits two of the most robust defensive squads against each other as the Seattle Kraken travel to take on the Dallas Stars. Dallas is the highest remaining seed in that half of the bracket after the Kraken pulled off a stunning upset of the defending Stanley Cup Champion Colorado Avalanche. Seattle turned to its defensive structure to hamper the Avs, limiting Colorado to two or fewer goals in all four of its wins. 

That’s analogous to what we saw from the Stars, holding the Wild to just three goals over the last three games of their opening-round win. Still, they will face a more sincere challenge from the Kraken, who play with more enthusiasm in the attacking zone and have superior scoring depth to what the Stars dealt with in Round 1. 

Not surprisingly, the Kraken enter this series as underdogs, but they could pull off yet another upset en route to their first-ever Conference Finals.

• Game 1: DAL vs. SEA – May 2 @ 9:30 pm ET
• Game 2: DAL vs. SEA – May 4 @ 9:30 pm ET
• Game 3: SEA vs. DAL – TBD
• Game 4: SEA vs. DAL – TBD
• *Game 5: DAL vs. SEA – TBD
• *Game 6: SEA vs. DAL – TBD
• *Game 7: DAL vs. SEA – TBD 

Seattle’s strength is its balanced scoring attack. The NHL’s newest franchise had six 20-goal scorers in the regular season, needing production out of each to get past the Avalanche. Fifteen different players found the back of the net in the first round, highlighting their ability to get output from top to bottom. That’s unlike anything the Stars had to contend with against Minnesota, with just nine skaters scoring and one line driving production.

Although they get offensive contributions from most of their lineup, the Kraken’s most significant advantage comes from their defensive structure. Seattle ended the regular season top ten in scoring and high-danger chances allowed, giving up an average of 21.3 and 8.9, respectively. More importantly, they maintained that standard in the postseason, limiting the Avs to 25 or fewer scoring chances in all but one of those contests and nine or fewer high-danger opportunities in five of seven. 

Seattle should be able to sustain that play against the second-ranked Stars.

• Series Price: Stars +194 | Kraken +156
• Eastern Conference Odds: Stars +250 | Kraken +550
• Stanley Cup Odds: Stars +650 | Kraken +1800

The Stars struggled to produce at five-on-five in the opening round of the playoffs. Dallas was held to nine or fewer high-danger opportunities in four of six, averaging just 7.3 chances per game. Similarly, scoring chances were hard to come by, with the Stars attempting 20.5, failing to surpass 21 in all but two of those outings. Those metrics look even worse when adjusted for overtime. The Stars and Wild played nearly five periods in Game 1, meaning Dallas averaged just 18.8 scoring and 6.7 quality chances per 60 minutes. 

Predictably, limited production yielded diminished output. The Stars recorded one or fewer goals at five-on-five in four of their six contests. That illustrates an increased reliance on special teams scoring, which is an unsustainable way of winning games.

• Kraken +156
• Series Total Games 7 +205

Once again, defensive structure will be on full display in this one. Neither team concedes many opportunities, instead relying on an opportunistic offense. That advantage plays into the Kraken’s hands as they’ve benefitted from a more balanced attack throughout the regular season and into the playoffs. Additionally, the Stars depend on special teams scoring, with only nine of their 21 goals coming at five-on-five, an extension of their regular season trend. 

Consequently, we give the edge to backing Seattle at the current series prices. Nevertheless, we’re betting this series goes the full seven, with multiple contests requiring overtime.