How the public is betting Stars vs. Flames first round playoff series

Game 6 update: The Stars won 7-3 to win the series after Denis Gurianov scored four goals and notched one assist.

Game 5 update: The Stars won 2-1 on a third period goal from John Klingberg and 28 saves by Anton Khudobin.

Game 4 update: The Stars won 5-4 on a hat trick from center Joe Pavelski.

Game 3 update: The Flames won 2-0 behind 35 saves from Cam Talbot.

Game 2 update: The Stars won 5-4 on a Jamie Oleksiak goal with 40 seconds left in the third period.

Game 1 update: The Flames won 3-2. Dillon Dube scored two goals in the first period and Rasmus Anderson won the game with four minutes left in the third period.

The Dallas Stars and Calgary Flames open their first round series on Tuesday as the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs get underway. The series takes place in the Edmonton hub city, with the Stars getting to wear their home jerseys for four of the seven games.

The Stars are the No. 3 seed after winning one of three round robin games. The Flames were the 8th seed in the qualifying round and took care of business against the Winnipeg Jets, winning the series in four games. Dallas enters the series as a -118 favorite at DraftKings Sportsbook against even money Calgary. The betting public is backing the underdogs in this one, with 56 percent of the handle and 75 percent of total bets on the Flames.

Game 1 of the series gets going at 5:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday, and the public is backing the Flames across the board. Calgary is -103 on the money line to Dallas’ -113 and the Flames are getting 58 percent of handle and 57 percent of bets. The Flames are +1.5 on the puck line and are getting a whopping 54 percent of handle and a robust 73 percent of bets to cover that line. Bettors expect a shootout, with over 5.5 total goals getting 55 percent of bets and 80 percent of handle.

The Stars have the most significant lineup question heading into this game. Goalie Ben Bishop was “unfit to play” in the team’s last two round robin games, but is reportedly healthy. The team has not announced a decision as to whether or not he’ll start Game 1, according to reporter Sean Shapiro. If he does not go, Anton Khudobin would get the start.

Here is the Stars-Flames series schedule. The Stars win the series 4-2.

Game 1: Flames 3, Stars 2
Game 2: Stars 5, Flames 4
Game 3: Flames 2, Stars 0
Game 4: Stars 5, Flames 4
Game 5: Stars 2, Flames 1
Game 6: Stars 7, Flames 3