Two teams that split their season series 1-1 last year, the Dallas Stars and the Montreal Canadiens collide at Bell Centre in an East-West tilt. The puck drops at 7:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday, October 30, and you’ll be able to catch it live on Fox Sports Southwest.
Dallas Stars at Montreal Canadiens Odds
Dallas (+120) is playing the role of underdog to Montreal (-140) and the oddsmakers have set the Over/Under (O/U) at 6 goals (-115 for the over, -105 for the under).
The Canadiens are 6-4 straight up (SU) and have netted 3.9 units for moneyline bettors this season. That winning percentage, the third-best in the Atlantic Division in this young season, is a surprising improvement over the 29-53 record from the 2017-18 season campaign. Through 10 regular season matches, five of the team’s games have gone under the total, while four have gone over and just one has pushed. The team is 4-1 SU at home this season.
Montreal’s converted on 17.9 percent of its power play chances this year, a mark that’s right around league average. On the other hand, its penalty kill is rated 18th overall, and it’s successfully killed off 76.5 percent of all penalties.
Montreal, as a collective unit, has been penalized 3.9 times per game this season, a number that’s pretty close to last year’s 3.8 penalties per game the team gave up. After serving an average of 8.6 penalty minutes per game a year ago, the team’s had to stave off opponent power plays for 9.2 minutes per outing this season.
Averaging 25.3 saves per game with a .922 save percentage, Carey Price (4-3-2) has been the top option in goal for the Canadiens this year. If they decide to rest him, however, head coach Claude Julien could turn to Antti Niemi (2-1-1 record, .898 save percentage, 3.26 goals against average).
The Habs will continue relying on offensive production from Max Domi and Jeff Petry. Domi (11 points) has tallied five goals and six assists and has recorded two or more points on three different occasions this year. Petry has one goal and eight assists to his name and has recorded at least one point in six contests.
On the other side of the ice, Dallas is 5-5 straight up (SU) and has lost 1.9 units for moneyline bettors this year. A total of four of its contests have gone over the total, while another four have gone under the total and two have pushed. As the visiting team, Dallas is 0-3 SU so far.
Dallas has scored on 28.6 percent of its power play opportunities this season, a figure that’s good enough for seventh-best in the league. On the other hand, its penalty kill unit is ranked sixth overall and it’s successfully killed off 85.7 percent of all penalties.
Dallas’ skaters have been penalized 3.9 times per game this season. Last season, that number was at 4.2, which was the fourth-highest mark in the league. After serving an average of 10.1 penalty minutes per game a season ago the team has had to kill penalties for 8.7 minutes per matchup this year.
Ben Bishop (2.42 goals against average and .917 save percentage) has been the main option in goal for Dallas. Bishop is averaging 26.4 saves per game and has four wins and four losses to his credit.
Tyler Seguin (three goals, nine assists) has been one of the most vital playmaking threats for the visiting Stars.
Dallas Stars vs. Montreal Canadiens Free Picks
Prediction: SU Winner – Stars, O/U – Over
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Notes
Betting Trends
The total has gone under in three of Montreal’s last five games.
Dallas has managed 30.7 shot attempts per game over its last five road games while Montreal is averaging 35.6 shots per game over its last five home outings.
The Stars are 0-3 SU in games where they serve more penalty minutes than their opponent while the Canadiens are 1-3 SU when they spend more time in the box than their opponent.
After going 2-6 in games decided by a shootout last year, Montreal is off to a 1-0 start in shootouts this season. Dallas was 4-3 in shootouts last year and has yet to participate in one this time around.
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