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Posted at 2:15 PM EST

7:05 PM EST. Regulation only. The first thing worth pointing out here is the goaltending mismatch in the Stars favor. The Sabres goaltending situation is a mess right now, as Phil Housley is terrified to use either of his two starters. No matter which one he chooses (looks like Ullmark is starting), it’s the wrong choice. Ullmark has lost his last two starts, while allowing four goals against in each contest. Over his last 10 starts, Ullmark has a save percentage of .881. By contrast, Ben Bishop was selected as the NHL's second star of the week for the period ending March 10. He posted a pair of shutouts, while stopping all 59 shots he faced. Bishop has a mark of 22-14-2 this season with a 2.13 goals-against average and .930 save percentage. A hot goaltender is a tough goaltender to beat.

Next we have state of mind. It’s one thing to be playing out the string when you never had a chance to make the playoffs, (like Ottawa for instance) but it’s quite another when a team starts the season well, expectations and hopes are high and the playoffs are an attainable goal. Fast forward five months after realizing that the playoffs are out of reach and it has to be demoralizing. That’s where the Sabres are right now. After all that blood, sweat and tears, Buffalo will miss the playoffs again this year and they know it. Playing at home in front of an agonized fan base can’t be beneficial either. As far as the role of the spoiler goes, that’s for teams that have never had a chance and if the Sabres were to be motivated to make life miserable for another team, that motivation will come against a rival and not a team from the West that they rarely see.

By contrast again, Dallas is looking to solidify their playoff position. Every shift, every period and every game counts now and so, too, does every crucial point they can accumulate. There are two playoff spots up for grabs between Colorado, Arizona, Dallas and Minnesota with the Blackhawks having an outside shot also. Right now, Dallas is just two points up on Arizona, thus, the Stars are two points from missing the playoffs. They have a game in hand on the Coyotes too. Finally, Dallas is simply the superior team that is also in better form. The Stars have won three of four and have allowed just three goals against over that span. Give a massive edge to the Stars in all the intangibles and then pencil us in on taking back a price with them to win in regulation.

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