Dallas Stars vs. Montreal Canadiens: Prediction, Preview, Picks & Odds - 10/22/2022

Time: 7 p.m. ET

Venue: Bell Centre, Montreal, QE

Where to watch: NHL Network, TVAS, CITY, SNE, Bally Sports Southwest

DraftKings: Stars -165, Canadiens +140

FanDuel: Stars -170, Canadiens +140

BetMGM: Stars -167, Canadiens +140

Caesars: Stars -165, Canadiens +140

Stars: 3-0-1

Canadiens: 3-2-0

Stars: lost 3-2 (OT) at Maple Leafs

Canadiens: won 6-2 vs. Coyotes

Don’t think we had this one on the bingo card: The Dallas Stars have seven points through four games and have looked really, really good under new coach Pete DeBoer. To be fair, the three wins have come against the Nashville Predators and the head-coach-less Winnipeg Jets, but they’re getting great goaltending from Jake Oettinger and Mason Marchment absolutely looks like the prized acquisition he’s meant to be. The Stars will try to win for the fourth time in five games on Saturday when they visit the Montreal Canadiens, who are a surprising 3-2-0 to begin the year and are also looking for a third straight win.

The Stars have a lot to prove this year, and honestly, so does DeBoer. The former coach of the Vegas Golden Knights probably didn’t feel like he deserved to be fired after the masterful job he did to get Vegas nearly to the playoffs, but he has an arguably more talented roster in Dallas and it’s paying dividends right now with Marchment leading the team with six points. Don’t forget about 40-goal scorer Jason Robertson, who is still coming along after not having a preseason, etc.

But the Stars are coming off a 3-2 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday that seemed like a blown opportunity after Nick Robertson – Jason’s brother, no less – scored the game-winning power play goal in overtime. If you need anyone to blame on this trek, go grab Luke Glendening for that penalty.

“They’ve got some skill guys,” DeBoer said. “When they’ve got the puck they’re hard to defend. A good road point.”

It will be interesting to see how the Stars continue on this road trip and how they handle the momentum garnered by what Montreal is trying to do. The Habs are not playing near the floor like we’d expect; they’re getting quality goal scoring and good goaltending along the way. So far, so good. Especially after winning 6-2 over the Arizona Coyotes after winning 3-2 at home against the Pittsburgh Penguins is a good start to have.

Juraj Slafkovsky, the No. 1 overall pick of this past NHL Draft, scored his first goal in the league, and Nick Suzuki even destroyed the confidence of Connor Ingram with the filthiest penalty shot goal you’ve ever seen. Seriously, if you haven’t seen it, go watch YouTube or something and just indulge in such a thing.

“I’m happy for the kid,” Canadiens coach Martin St. Louis said of Slafkovsky scoring in his fifth NHL game. “There’s a lot of pressure for an 18-year-old, first overall pick, to play here in Montreal and the fans made a nice gesture to encourage the kid scoring his first goal. I was expecting nothing less, we have spectacular fans.”

Dallas is coming in as sizable favorites in this one, posting as high as -155 in some books based on talent alone. Not that we should discredit Montreal’s talent for anything, but I’d have a hard time picking against the Stars here.

Getting by Oettinger would be a strong feat for the young Habs. Unfortunately for them, Oettinger might be the early, early, early clubhouse leader for the Vezina. Stars win 3-1

Stars are 19-14 in non-conference games the last three years.

Stars are 9-11 after losing their last game in OT over the last three years.

Canadiens are 8-25 in non-conference games the last three years.

Under is 22-9 the last three years when the Habs are coming off a home win.

Stars:

Jason Robertson -- Roope Hintz -- Joe Pavelski

Mason Marchment -- Tyler Seguin -- Ty Dellandrea

Jamie Benn -- Wyatt Johnston -- Denis Gurianov

Radek Faksa -- Luke Glendening -- Joel Kiviranta

Miro Heiskanen -- Colin Miller

Ryan Suter -- Jani Hakanpaa

Esa Lindell -- Nils Lundkvist

Jake Oettinger

Canadiens:

Cole Caufield -- Nick Suzuki -- Sean Monahan

Evgenii Dadonov -- Christian Dvorak -- Brendan Gallagher

Jonathan Drouin -- Kirby Dach -- Josh Anderson

Juraj Slafkovsky -- Jake Evans -- Mike Hoffman

Kaiden Guhle -- David Savard

Jordan Harris -- Johnathan Kovacevic

Arber Xhekaj -- Chris Wideman

Jake Allen

Points: Mason Marchment -- 6

Goals: Mason Marchment -- 3

Assists: Jason Robertson -- 4

Goalie: Jake Oettinger -- 3-0-0, 1.00 GAA, .966 SV%

Points: Nick Suzuki -- 6

Goals: Cole Caufield -- 4

Assists: Nick Suzuki -- 3

Goalie: Jake Allen -- 2-1-0, 2.02 GAA, .938 SV%