The Boston Bruins (39-13-12, 90 points) currently lead the Atlantic Division despite losing two in a row. It helps that the team that has been chasing them, the Tampa Bay Lightning, have lost three in a row after making a huge run. After a Western Canada swing, Boston is now in the second game of a homestand as they welcome the Dallas Stars to town on Thursday night. The Stars (37-20-6, 80 points) sit in third place in the Central Division, four points behind the division-leading St. Louis Blues and a point behind the Colorado Avalanche. Dallas had clawed their way to the top of the division, briefly, before getting routed by the Blues at home on Friday. Since then, though, the Stars have won a pair of games, only to see the teams above them win as well. Can Dallas pick up what would be a large upset on the road? Or will the Bruins end their two-game skid? Don’t place any wagers without reading our sports betting preview. Let’s see how the NHL odds will be for the Stars vs Bruins.
Stars vs Bruins 2020 NHL Game Preview & Betting Odds
- When: Thursday, February 27, 2020, 7:30 pm ET
- Where: TD Garden, Boston
- TV: NBC Sports
- Radio: KTCK 1310 AM Dallas / WBZ 98.5 FM Boston
- Live Stream: NBCSports.com
- NBA Odds: Boston -170 / O/U 5
Why should you bet on Dallas?
I will be honest when I say that I don’t always have the best betting handle on Stars hockey. As a hometown fan, I have tended to overrate them in the past, and then disappointment has made me tend to underrate them. I picked the Blues to beat them on Friday, but I have to admit I did not expect them to lie down for the Blues as badly as they did. But then when Dallas played in Carolina on Tuesday, I thought the Hurricanes would roll over them, but the Stars delivered a 4-1 thumping.
In that game, Dallas came out full of energy, scoring three goals in the first period, as Dallas went to 7-1-1 in their last nine games and 6-0-2 in their last eight games away from home. Roope Hintz had a goal and two assists, and Denis Gurianov had a goal and an assist, while Tyler Seguin and Jason Dickinson also found the back of the net — despite Dallas only putting 16 shots on the Carolina net. Anton Khudobin was huge for Dallas in net, stopping 40 of 41 shots. Dallas is 20-9-3 under interim coach Rick Bowness.
Why should you put your money on Boston?
Boston saw a five-game winning streak come to an emphatic end on Sunday in Vancouver, as the Canucks routed the Bruins, 9-3. Boston came home to face a Calgary team that they had just beaten on Friday, but the TD Garden apparently did not provide enough of a home advantage for the B’s as the Flames delivered a 5-2 tattooing of the Atlantic Division leaders.
In that loss, Boston suffered consecutive defeats for the first time since early December and just the third home loss in regulation. Calgary jumped out to an early 1-0 lead, only to see Brad Marchand score a short-handed goal 10:08 into the second period on a breakaway, notching a point for the seventh straight game. Marchand appeared to get into a war of words with one of the Calgary forwards, and that seemed to motivate the Flames as they put a pair of goals in the Boston net in the second half of the second period. The Bruins did not come out with a lot of energy, perhaps with some collective weariness from the road trip. Can they bring more energy against Dallas?
Stars vs Bruins Final Score Prediction
If you look at the numbers, Dallas comes in a bit hotter than Boston, winners of seven of nine and two in a row, while Boston has dropped two straight. However, the Bruins are the NHL’s point leaders and have the offensive talent to pour it on the Stars if Dallas comes out flat at all. I see both teams bringing solid games, with the Bruins coming away with a 4-3 win.
