All tied up 2-2, the Dallas Stars and Minnesota Wild head back to the Lone Star State for Game 5 of this incredibly intense series.
The first and fourth games were both fairly close, whereas the third and fourth were blowouts. Now that this series is tied, it becomes a best-of-three and more is at stake. I'm expecting the star players to come out of their shells when their teams need them most, with goaltending becoming a major factor in the end result.
Here is a same game parlay option for Game 5 of Wild vs. Stars that has a chance.
Same-Game Parlay: Minnesota Wild vs. Dallas Stars
The Parlay (+421 via FanDuel)
- Jason Robertson to Record 4+ Shots
- Kirill Kaprizov to Record 4+ Shots
- Under 5.5 Goals
Jason Robertson to Record 4+ Shots on Goal
Robertson has been one of the more dynamic players these past two years, but has been held scoreless since Game 1.
While the Stars are a deep team, they rely on Robertson to carry the load. He's managed to notch four points in as many games, but on Sunday, he was held to zero shots.
He's certainly generated an ample amount of chances, though not as much as he'd hoped. This season, Robertson led the team in high-danger chances, scoring chances and expected goals. However, in this series, he's ranked fourth, third and fifth, respectively.
While Robertson has managed to generate at least three shots in Games 1-3, the Wild have done a great job keeping him to the outside and limiting his scoring opportunities.
Now that we're in Dallas, I can see the ice open up for Robertson. Most of the shots he attempts go on net (28 out of 30 this series), so it's something to look out for.
Kirill Kaprizov to Record 4+ Shots Goal
For the most part, Kaprizov has been kept at bay. The Russian dynamo has only one goal and zero assists this series, which is unlike him given that the playoffs are usually his time to shine.
The problem is that Dallas has one of the better defensive corps in the NHL. Top it off with Jake Oettinger, who's been a brick wall, and it's hard to put pucks into the net.
Kaprizov is a shot creator, though, and his 3.25 shots per game are a tad lower than the 3.9 per game he posted during the season. Similar to Robertson, the Stars have planned well to stifle Kaprizov and his ability to tear open a game. He ranks sixth in high-danger chances, sixth in scoring chances for and fourth in expected goals.
However, great players always find a way, and I can see Kaprizov breaking out with a myriad of scoring opportunities in this bout.
Under 5.5 Goals
The only time this game went over was when Marc-Andre Fleury started for Minnesota. Now that we know that won't happen again for the foreseeable future, I think there's a very good chance we have another low-scoring game.
Filip Gustavsson has been a saving grace for the Wild, playing to an amazing .941 save percentage and a +3.0 GSAx. On the other side, Oettinger has been good but not as good Gustavsson with a .909 save percentage and a +0.7 GSAx. Oettinger has the potential to take over a game, especially in the playoffs (see last year against Calgary).
To go along with the elite goaltending, this series is tight checking and scrappy. Dallas and Minnesota are third and fourth in xGA/60, respectively, and both have a potent penalty kill.
So while I think there will be a few more shots generated, I'd still be stunned if this goes over six goals.
Pick: Under 5.5 |
