Tampa Bay Opens as -180 Favorite vs Stars in Stanley Cup Final

• The Dallas Stars and Tampa Bay Lightning will meet in the 2020 Stanley Cup Final
• Game 1 of the series will be played Saturday, Sep. 19th, at 8:00 PM Eastern (5:00 PM Pacific)
• Tampa has opened as a heavy favorite, and after breaking down the offense, defense and goaltending, it’s clear why

The Tampa Bay Lightning are your Eastern Conference champions. The Dallas Stars are your Western Conference champions. The matchup for the 2020 Stanley Cup final is set.

The Lightning are heavy favorites to capture their first championship since 2004.

Dallas Stars vs Tampa Bay Lightning Stanley Cup Final Odds

Odds taken Sep. 18th

Offense, defense, goaltending: the three distinct parts of a team. How do the Lightning and Stars stack up heading into the Stanley Cup final? Let’s break down the three key areas of the game.

Offense: Edge Goes to Lightning Superstars Kucherov & Point

Nikita Kucherov picked up an assist in Game 6 against the New York Islanders and now leads the playoffs with 26 points. He’s one point ahead of teammate Brayden Point, who is dinged up but apparently healthy enough to be on the ice.

The dynamic duo give Tampa Bay a big edge in this area of the game. Add in Ondrej Palat and other great depth pieces, and the Lightning become a very tough team to stop. There’s no word on if Steven Stamkos will play in the final, but if he does, Tampa’s edge gets that much bigger.

YOUR OT HERO, ANTHONY CIRELLI. 🚨 pic.twitter.com/9ORlHj2MRD

— Tampa Bay Lightning (@TBLightning) September 18, 2020

The Stars are no slouch offensively, themselves, it’s just more of a committee approach. Their leading scorer is defenseman Miro Heiskanen (more on him in a minute). Jamie Benn leads all forwards on the team with 18 points. Other top contributors are veterans Alex Radulov, Tyler Seguin, and Joe Pavelski.

Outside of their finnish superstar on defense and the up-and-coming Denis Gurianov (23), the production mostly comes from aging veterans. They are nice pieces but not comparable to the firepower Tampa Bay offers.

Defense: Heiskanen & Hedman Are the Two Players to Watch

Heiskanen is only 21 years old but ask anyone who covers the game and they’ll tell you he’s a future Norris Trophy winner. Smooth in his own end and skilled on the offensive side of the ice, he’s a dynamic player that chews up big minutes.

The Lightning blueline is by Victor Hedman, who won the Norris Trophy himself in 2018 and is nominated again this season.

See you Saturday, @TBLightning 👋 pic.twitter.com/66Kx36MYOZ

— Dallas Stars (@DallasStars) September 18, 2020

Those two All-Stars are most deserving of your attention but that doesn’t mean there isn’t other talent on the ice. The Lightning also rely heavily on Ryan McDonagh and Mikhail Sergachev, while the Stars have John Klingberg and Jamie Oleksiak. A key reason these two teams are playing in the final is the fact they are the two best defensive teams.

Consider it a draw in the defensive zone, with one elite player on each team who can swing the series in either direction.

Goaltending: Is Anton Khudobin the Next Tim Thomas?

Anton Khudobin being compared to Tim Thomas isn’t totally crazy. Both were well into their thirties when they reached their peak. The difference would be Thomas stayed at that level for a handful of years while Khudobin has been playing at a great clip for a handful of weeks.

The Stars should be comfortable with him in goal, but comfortable doesn’t mean you have the edge when the reigning Vezina Trophy-winner is at the other end of the ice.

Good morning.

Anton Khudobin is a legend.

Enjoy your Tuesday. #StanleyCup (🎥 @dallasstars) pic.twitter.com/rl4tugpMQh

— NHL on NBC Sports (@NHLonNBCSports) September 15, 2020

Andrei Vasilevskiy was named the best goalie in the sport last year and he’s nominated again in 2020. He is sporting a 1.82 goals against average which ranks second (min. 5 games played) and .931 save percentage which ranks fourth (min. 5 games played). There is a reason Tampa Bay gave him the largest contract for a goalie in franchise history when they inked him to an 8-year, $76-million extension.

Khudobin is a fun story but nobody would take him over Vasilevskiy.

Bet the Lightning to Win the Stanley Cup

While Dallas may be the fresher team and could steal an early series lead, ultimately, the talent up front and in goal will win out and the Lightning will be your 2020 Stanley Cup champions. Don’t shy away from the -180 price tag (65% implied probability); they are the favorites for good reason.

PICK: Tampa Bay Lightning (-180)