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The Western Conference Final gets underway on Tuesday as Edmonton takes on Dallas.  Our writers make their predictions on who will win the series.

Western Conference

Edmonton Oilers vs Dallas Stars

David Woodward predicts: Stars in 6 games
Kevin Leveille predicts: Stars in 6 games
Norm Szcyrek predicts: Stars in 6 games
William Shoukri predicts: Oilers in 7 games
Allan Katz predicts: Oilers in 6 games
James Turner predicts: Stars in 7 games
Brian La Rose predicts: Stars in 6 games

(David) While Edmonton has Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, Dallas has far greater depth throughout the lineup and they’re getting healthy at the right time. Jake Oettinger is by far the better goalkeeper and Dallas’ back end, with Miro Heiskanen and Thomas Harley leading the way, is far better than the Oilers’ defencemen. The Dallas top nine up front is also far deeper up front than the Edmonton forwards. Of course, with McDavid and Draisaitl, anything can happen and as a Canadian hockey fan, this scribbler will be rooting for the Oilers. However, my head says the Stars in six games.

(Kevin) When this matchup surfaced in last season’s Western Conference Final, I wrote that the Stars were deeper, had a better blueline, and goaltending. I picked the Stars in six and added the caveat would be the Oilers riding McDrai to victory. Surprisingly, Stuart Skinner had his best series as the Oilers handled the Stars, but can they do it again? The Oilers are deeper than last year, but the Stars are still deeper. Skinner ended last series playing much better, but Oettinger is still better.

Edmonton’s blueline has played much better despite not having Ekholm, yet the Stars are still a better blue line. McDrai is still a force, but the Stars acquired Mikko Rantanen to counter. The one thing that is like last year is that Edmonton has played easier opposition coming into the series, so if they can use that to win some games early in the series, they can repeat the surprising result from last season. I’m not sure I’m willing to wager on it, but I admit that it is possible. The Stars suddenly find themselves with two star defenders in Heiskanen and Harley. They’ve added a scoring star in Rantanen to add to an already deep roster. I want to see the Canadian team win, but I don’t see it. I was wrong last year and will hope I am again.

(Norm) The Stars emerged from a hard-fought series last round by eliminating Winnipeg in six games, clinching the last game in overtime. Harley scored that series-winning goal and has stepped up to lead the Stars’ blueliners. Star defenceman Heiskanen returned from knee surgery back in January to contribute. Up front, Rantanen continues to dominate, leading the NHL in scoring with 19 points after the first two rounds.

Edmonton defeated Vegas in five games with relative ease. Superstars McDavid and Draisaitl keep producing in the postseason, leading their team with 17 and 16 points, respectively. Defenceman Evan Bouchard leads the NHL in scoring for defencemen with 12 points. When it comes to regular season games, Dallas had the edge, winning two of the three games, with a 12-9 goal advantage. As much as I’d like to see Edmonton return to the Final this season, I cannot bet against Dallas’s advantages on team defence and goaltending, and predict the Stars will advance in this series.

(William) I was all in on the Stars until two nights ago, when I rewatched an enormous amount of tape. Both of these teams are weaker defensively than their Eastern Conference counterparts, and I think this series could go either way in a heartbeat. I just can’t ignore how solid Edmonton’s bottom-six has been, and how poor Dallas’ has been at 5-on-5. If Dallas wins, I think it will be on the back of Jake Oettinger and the power play. The Stars have been nearly unstoppable on the man advantage, and Edmonton has struggled on the penalty kill.

(Allan) The Oilers are carrying the Canadian Banner into this series. If the Oilers don’t win the Cup, the only Canadian team with a shot will be the Laval Rocket. You heard it from me first, the Rocket will not win the Stanley Cup this year. The only thing Dallas has over the Oilers is depth, momentum, the best player in the playoff scoring race, goaltending, and size. The Oilers have potentially the two best forwards in the NHL with Draisaitl and McDavid, but only a homer (defined as a Canadian wanting a Canadian team to win) would pick the Oilers to win. Anyone who picks the Oilers is throwing caution to the wind and is probably very handsome, if not a complete idiot.

(James) As the NHL postseason moves on, it feels more and more like this could be Dallas’s year. Oettinger is playing at an elite level, and  Rantanen looks like a Conn Smythe favourite. I’m not counting out McDavid and Edmonton. They quickly and convincingly dispatched the Golden Knights in the last round and are a worthy contender for the Western Conference crown. Dallas having to overcome Colorado and Winnipeg en route to the Conference Final is more impressive, though. I think the Stars take the next step and make it to the Stanley Cup Final.

(Brian) Last year, I picked Dallas to win this series, using logic that proved to be incorrect.  And yet, I’m using this same logic to make the pick again.  Edmonton is solid but it’s possible that they’re a weaker opponent than the first two the Stars faced, especially since I don’t trust Skinner despite his strong finish last round.  Dallas is vulnerable, especially with some of their better players struggling, but I think they find a way to push through and get the series this time.