Kraken or Stars: Who will win Game 7? Experts make picks for who gets to conference final
The Seattle Kraken are perfect in Game 7s. It's a small sample size because the second-year team is making its playoff debut, but the Kraken shocked the defending Stanley Cup champion Colorado Avalanche in the first round.
Now they will try to pull off a second road upset on Monday night as they visit the Dallas Stars (8 ET, ESPN) in a do-or-die game that will determine who meets the Vegas Golden Knights in the Western Conference final.
Seattle's Jaden Schwartz, Justin Schultz and Vince Dunn are a combined 12-0 in Game 7s, but Stars coach Peter DeBoer is 6-0.
Monday's game is exactly one year after the Stars' last Game 7, a 3-2 overtime loss to the Calgary Flames, a game in which Dallas goalie Jake Oettinger made 64 saves.
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Who will win Monday's Game 7? USA TODAY Sports experts weigh in.
Stars 3, Kraken 2. Dallas' Joe Pavelski is making his 10th appearance in a Game 7 and is 6-3 all-time. Given that experience and his second-round production (eight goals), count on him playing a big role in getting the Stars to the conference final for the second time in four years. Oettinger is 4-0 following a loss this postseason. — Mike Brehm
Stars 3, Kraken 2. Seattle has proven me a fool at every turn this postseason, but I'm still not prepared to pick the Kraken in this spot. Dallas has not lost two games in a row the entire postseason and it has home ice and Oettinger, who I expect to bounce back after he yielded four goals on 18 shots in Game 6. — Jace Evans
Stars 3, Kraken 1. I have the Stars winning the Stanley Cup, so I can't give up on them now. Oettinger has had two good games in this series, but Philipp Grubauer has been just as wobbly (.865 save percentage). I still give Oettinger the edge overall, and I think Jason Robertson picks a good time to score his first goal of the series. — Jimmy Hascup
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Kraken-Stars picks for Game 7 in NHL playoffs: Who moves on?
