Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Dallas Stars – NHL playoff series schedule & TV information
At long last, it’s Stanley Cup time. The Stanley Cup Finals between the Tampa Bay Lightning and Dallas Stars will kick off on Saturday evening on NBC.
On Thursday night, the Lightning advanced to the Finals after topping the Islanders in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals. Earlier this week, the Stars finished the Golden Knights in five games.
Here is the NHL playoff schedule for the Stanley Cup Finals:
- Game 1: Saturday, Sept. 19, 7:30 pm EST, NBC
- Game 2: Monday, Sept. 21, 8:00 pm EST, NBCS
- Game 3: Wednesday, Sept. 23, 8:00 pm EST, NBCS
- Game 4: Friday, Sept. 25, 8:00 pm EST, NBC
- Game 5: Saturday, Sept. 26, 8:00 pm EST, NBC
- Game 6: Monday, Sept. 28, 8:00 pm EST, NBC
- Game 7: Wednesday, Sept. 30, 8:00 pm EST, NBC
Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Dallas Stars – NHL playoff odds
The Lightning were one of the best teams during the regular season, and they’ve certainly showed that since returning from hiatus. Tampa Bay rolled through the seeding round, and they made quick work of the Blue Jackets and Bruins in the first and second rounds. The Islanders gave them some issues in the Conference Finals, but Tampa Bay’s ability to win games in different ways helped them secure the conference title.
Dallas’s path to the Stanley Cup Finals was a bit unorthodox. The team struggled to start the season, but after rebounding and going 17-4-2 over a 23-game stretch, the organization fired coach Jim Montgomery for detrimental conduct. 65-year-old assistant coach Rick Bowness took the reins, and while Dallas has appeared to be on the ropes multiple times since resuming play, they’ve managed to pull off a trip to the final round.
NHL series odds
The unpredictability of the NHL playoffs makes single-game betting both exhilarating and risky. While we’ll provide guidance on each game of the Stanley Cup Finals, we’re assuming there are some of you out there who are looking towards some series prop bets. For what it’s worth, we don’t view the Lightning (-200) nor the Stars (+170) as very enticing bets.
What is enticing is the “Series Correct Score.” We’re particularly big fans of a Lightning sweep, but you can’t go wrong with any of Tampa Bay’s odds:
- Lightning 4-0: +650
- Lighting 4-1: +375
- Lightning 4-2: +350
- Lighting 4-3: +425
- Stars 4-0: +2000
- Stars 4-1: +1000
- Stars 4-2: +675
- Starts 4-3: +600
Tampa Bay Lightning vs. Dallas Stars – NHL playoff series predictions
We’ve been pretty bullish on Tampa Bay’s chances throughout the postseason, and there’s no reason to jump off the bandwagon now. The Lightning offer all of the trends you’d like to see from a team, including head-to-head record (5-2-3 against Dallas in last 10), road record (29-12-4 vs. 26-16-5), and favorite vs. underdog record (48-27-6 vs. 23-13-3).Also, let’s not forget that the Lightning are 8-2 straight up over their last 10.
Dallas reminds us of the other teams that Tampa Bay has topped along the way. The Stars arguably have more talent than the Islanders, but we see similarities in their grit and ability to play up to their opponent. As Tampa Bay showed in the last round, that won’t matter all that much. We’re not expecting a long series…we’re taking Lightning in five.
