It’s that time of year again – the time when sports fans have a difficult decision to make as they flip between NFL games, NHL contests and MLB playoff competitions.  While the ultimate man cave would have eight (or more) TV screens, this isn’t always possible, nor is it always conducive for good eyesight.  Make sure the remote control’s batteries are fresh and get ready for a lot of channel-flipping, and take a look at some of the NHL action coming to the ice today.

The Boston Bruins are going to go up against the Dallas Stars and are hoping they can turn things around.  Last season, they were “this close” to taking home the Stanley Cup before losing the crucial Game 7 – at home, no less – against the St. Louis Blues.

The Bruins have one of the best top lines in the NHL, thanks to Patrice Bergeron, David Pastrnak and Brad Marchand, who, between the trio, had a total of 108 goals last year.  Marchand alone has a solid record against the Stars, scoring eight goals and 17 points across 13 games.

The Bruins have a couple of things working against them, though.  In the last eight games going up against Central Division teams, they have only managed to score two wins.  This doesn’t bode well for today’s performance.

The Stars are determined to make this their year, especially after a brutal exit last season.  They managed to take the Blues to seven games in the semifinals, even forcing a double-overtime for the Western Conference title, but ultimately fell just short.

It’s time for revenge and training has been especially tough in order to tighten up the squad.  Watch out as Alexander Rudulov, Tyler Seguin (who used to play for the Bruins, so he knows a few secrets) and captain Jamie Benn get on the ice to work their magic.  They have a combined 89 goals among them and, with the addition of former San Jose captain Joe Pavelski, there is a lot of talent that is ready to challenge the Bruins at every turn.

The Stars are -122 and the over/under is 5.5.  Expect those numbers to hold true as the final buzzer sounds.

It’s déjà vu for the Colorado Avalanche and the Calgary Flames.  The two teams are meeting in what can only be described as a playoff rematch to start the new season and the Avalanche hopes it can repeat its prior performance.  Colorado eliminated the Flames after winning four straight matches in the Stanley Cup Playoffs last year, and it’s ready to keep the record going.

The Avalanche are getting off on the right foot.  It decimated the Vegas Golden Knights, 4-1, in preseason, despite the latter predicted to be a strong contender for a Stanley Cup run this season.  The Avalanche then lost to the Stars in their preseason matchup, but that was more a fluke than anything else.  The Avalanche has a team that is almost at 100% (only one player, Ian Cole, is out due to injury) and having that strength is going to prove key to its performance tonight.

The fact that the Flames lost to the Avalanche in the playoffs stunned the team, especially since it had beaten Colorado in all of their competitions in the regular season.  It’s going to be looking for revenge and has some strong talent to make it happen.  Johnny Gaudreau picked up 99 points last season and the left-winger’s puck found the net four times against the Avalanche in the regular season.  With assistance from Elias Lindholm and Sean Monahan, both coming off career-high scoring last season, the Flames are ready.

However, the Avalanche isn’t going to let itself be beat on its own ice.  It is currently at -122 with an over/under of 5.5, and is going to outmaneuver and outflank the Knights, securing the victory.