Blues vs. Stars, NHL playoffs 2016: Time, TV schedule and live stream for Game 1

After two straight days of East Coast action, the West starts their Round 2 matches with a Central Division heavyweight series. The Blues and Stars get underway in the second round at 8 p.m. ET on NBCSN.

St. Louis has seemingly exorcised their playoff demons after besting the resilient Blackhawks in Round 1. They'll have a tough task here versus the Stars, this year's Central Division champions, but they've had Dallas' number with a clean 4-0 sweep during the season. The Blues give up home ice advantage to the Stars as well thanks to the standings, but they were essentially even in and away from their barn.

Brian Elliott should get the start in net, continuing on from his remarkable first round performance where he put up a .929 save percentage against one of the most potent offenses in the NHL.

After avoiding a scare against the Wild, the Stars take their playoffs back home to face the Blues. Dallas had trouble with their Central rivals this season and they'll be missing second overall points leader Tyler Seguin for at least the opening two games thanks to an Achilles tendon cut. Even so, the Stars offense is loaded still with Patrick Sharp, Jason Spezza and Jamie Benn, with the last two rounding out the top three point scorers of the playoffs thus far.

Kari Lehtonen will likely get the start for Dallas, building off of his series win in Minnesota.

8 p.m. ET | Game 1, Western Conference Round 2
American Airlines Center | Dallas, Texas
Local: N/A | Nat'l: NBCSN, CBC, TVAS
Live stream at NBC Live Extra and Rogers GameCentre
More coverage: Blues blog | Stars blog