Boston Bruins at Dallas Stars NHL Picks & Predictions 3/23/2018

Friday, March 23, 2018

American Airlines Center

Get todays NHL hockey odds on this game.

The Boston Bruins travel to American Airlines Center to play the Dallas Stars on Friday, March 23, 2018. The opening line for this game has the Bruins at -285 and the Stars at +252.

Boston has a record of 45-17-10 this season and on the road they have a record of 20-10-5-2. They are 2nd in the Atlantic Division. They've scored 240 goals and given up 186 goals for a point differential of +54. For the season they have an ATS record of 45-27-0 and an over/under record of 33-38-0. Dallas is 38-28-8 including 24-10-3-0 at home this season. They are 6th in the Central Division. They've scored 212 goals and surrendered 201 for a goal differential of +11. Their record against the spread is 38-36-0 while their over/under record is 38-34-0.

Valuable Boston Bruins Betting Trends

The Boston Bruins are 45-27-0 straight up this year

The Boston Bruins are 33-38-0 against the over/under this season

Important Dallas Stars Betting Trends

The Dallas Stars are 38-36-0 straight up this year

The Dallas Stars are 38-34-0 against the over/under this season

Key Boston Bruins Injuries

03/21/18 RW David Backes Laceration is "?" Friday vs Dallas
03/21/18 D Torey Krug Upper Body is "?" Friday vs Dallas
03/21/18 D Zdeno Chara Upper Body is "?" Friday vs Dallas
03/21/18 LW Rick Nash Upper Body is "?" Friday vs Dallas
03/18/18 LW Jake DeBrusk Upper Body is out indefinitely
03/06/18 D Charlie McAvoy Lower Body is out indefinitely
02/27/18 C Patrice Bergeron Foot is out indefinitely
02/01/18 LW Anders Bjork Shoulder IR (01/30)

Key Dallas Stars Injuries

03/20/18 RW Brett Ritchie Lower Body is "?" Friday vs Boston
03/20/18 C Jason Spezza Back is "?" Friday vs Boston
03/20/18 D Marc Methot Hand is "?" Friday vs Boston
03/18/18 GO Ben Bishop Knee is out indefinitely
03/01/18 C Martin Hanzal Back is out for season

Player Spotlight

Brad Marchand has accumulated 75 total points this season for the Bruins. He has 31 goals this year with 159 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 20%. He has a total of 44 assists on the season and averages 19.7 minutes played per game. David Pastrnak averages 17.9 minutes of ice time per game this year. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 14% by scoring 28 goals on 202 shots. He has 42 assists, giving him a total of 70 points on the season. Tuukka Rask has 30 wins and 11 losses this season in net for the Bruins. He has 1,290 shots against him and he's given up 108 goals. He's made 1,182 saves for a save percentage of 92%.

Player Spotlight

Tyler Seguin has scored 70 total points this year for the Stars. He has 39 goals this season with 304 shots on goal, giving him a shooting percentage of 13%. He has a total of 31 assists on the season and averages 20.7 minutes played per game. Jamie Benn averages 19.8 minutes of ice time per game. In that time he has a shooting percentage of 12% by scoring 27 goals on 222 shots. He has 41 assists, giving him a total of 68 points on the season. Kari Lehtonen has 12 wins and 11 losses this year in goal for the Stars. He has 746 shots against him and he's surrendered 66 goals. He's made 680 saves for a save percentage of 91%.

Useful Team Statistics

The Bruins have 100 total points this season, which ranks them 3rd in the NHL. They are 6th in the league in goals scored with 240 while they've given up 186 goals, ranking them 29th overall. They have had 231 power play opportunities and have scored 52 goals on those chances for a percentage of 23%. That is 6th in the NHL. The Bruins have allowed 219 power play opportunities and have given up 39 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 82%, putting them 9th in the league when short-handed. They average 33 shots per game and as a team shoot 10.14% for the season. They allow 29 shots to their opposition per contest and have a team save percentage of 91%. That puts them 10th in the league in stopping the puck.

Useful Team Statistics

The Stars are 17th in the NHL with a total of 84 points this year. They have 46 power play goals on 225 opportunities for a percentage of 20%. That ranks them 15th in the league as a power play unit. They've allowed 256 power play opportunities and have given up 47 goals on those chances for a penalty kill percentage of 82%. That is 11th in the NHL. As a team, the Stars are 16th in the league with 212 goals scored while they've given up 201 goals, which is 23rd overall. They average 31 shots per contest and have a team shooting percentage of 9.10%. As a team they give up 30 shots per game and have a save percentage of 91%. That is 14th in the NHL.

Advanced Statistics

Boston is 2nd in the NHL in Corsi percentage with 52.7%, as they've attempted 4,307 shots on net at full strength while they've given up 3,872 shots on net in the same situations. Their Fenwick percentage is 52.8% as they have 3,262 attempts while they have given up 2,914 shots on the defensive end. That ranks them 2nd in the league. The Bruins start possessions in the offensive zone 55.1% of the time, which is 3rd in the league, while their defensive zone percentage is at 44.9% for the season. That is 29th overall in the NHL. They have 2,258 face-off wins compared to 2,210 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 50.5%. That ranks them 9th in the league. On defense Boston has 1,721 hits and they have blocked 958 shots from the opposition, putting them 30th overall.

Advanced Statistics

The Stars start possessions in the offensive zone 48.6% of the time while their defensive zone percentage is at 51.4% for the year. That ranks them 24th and 7th respectively in the NHL. They have 2,471 face-off wins as opposed to 2,208 losses, meaning their face-off win percentage is 52.8%. That is 2nd in the league. On defense Dallas has 1,695 hits and they've blocked 1,156 attempts from opposing offenses, ranking them 5th in blocked shots. Dallas is ranked 8th in Corsi percentage with 51% as they've tried 4,359 shots on goal while at full strength while they have surrendered 4,193 shots on net when they have a full team on the ice. Their Fenwick percentage is 11th in the NHL at 51.3%, as they have 3,199 shots while they've given up 3,037 attempts on defense.

Who will win tonight's Bruins/Stars NHL game against the spread?

Josh's Pick: Take Dallas +252

Get $60 worth of FREE premium member picks. No Obligation. No Salesman. No Credit Card. Fast Sign up with Instant Access Click Here

Read more articles by Josh Schonwald