Two of the NHL’s best skaters meet when the Dallas Stars (22-7-5) and Mikko Rantanen (14 goals and 30 assists) visit the San Jose Sharks (17-14-3) and Macklin Celebrini (18 goals and 33 assists) at SAP Center at San Jose on Thursday, Dec. 18 at 10 p.m. ET, airing on ESPN+.
Dallas secured a 4-1 home victory against the Los Angeles Kings its last time out on Dec. 15.
San Jose won at home in its last game on Dec. 16, 6-3 over the Calgary Flames.
Here’s everything you need to get ready for Thursday’s hockey action.
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Dallas Stars vs. San Jose Sharks odds and betting lines
NHL odds courtesy of BetMGM Sportsbook. Odds updated Thursday at 1:51 a.m. ET. For a full list of sports betting odds, access USA TODAY Sports Betting Scores Odds Hub.
Favorite: Stars (-216)Underdog: Sharks (+178)Over/under: 6Stars vs. Sharks game info and start timeDate: Thursday, December 18, 2025Time: 10 p.m. ETTV channel: ESPN+Live stream: Watch on ESPN+
Watch Stars vs. Sharks on ESPN+!
Stars stats and trendsDallas has won 17 of the 27 games it’s played as the moneyline favorite this season.In one games with moneyline odds shorter than -216, the Stars have won every time.There is a 68.4% chance that Dallas wins this contest, per the moneyline.Dallas’ games this season have gone over 6 goals 17 of 34 times.In their past 10 matchups, the Stars have gone 7-2-1 to earn 80.0% of the possible points.They have totaled 31 goals during that span.On the defensive side, the Stars have given up 2.0 goals per game (20 total) over those 10 outings.Sharks stats and trendsThe Sharks have been the underdog 34 times this season, and upset their opponent in 17, or 50.0%, of those games.San Jose has a record of 4-8 in games when oddsmakers list the team at +178 or longer on the moneyline.The moneyline set for this contest implies a 36.0% chance for the Sharks to win.In 50.0% of San Jose’s previous games this season (17/34), the teams combined to score over Thursday’s over/under of 6 goals.In their past 10 games, the Sharks have gone 6-4-0 to earn 80.0% of the possible points.They are scoring at a 3.4 goals-per-game average (34 total) during that stretch.On the defensive end, the Sharks have allowed 33 goals (3.3 per game) in those 10 outings.