Spezza Heads Home As Stars Look To Get Back On Track
By Marcus Gatto
Jan 18, 2015; Chicago, IL, USA; Dallas Stars center Jason Spezza (90) warms up prior to the first period against the Chicago Blackhawks at the United Center. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Wierzbicki-USA TODAY Sports
The Dallas Stars will look for their first win of the post all-star break on Thursday night as they visit Kanata, Ontario for a matchup with the Senators. This will be the final matchup between the two teams this season. In their previous meeting, the Stars stormed back from a 3-1 deficit to shock the Senators 5-4. This game will most notably be the return of longtime Ottawa Senator and now Dallas Star, Jason Spezza. The game will be broadcasted on Fox Sports Southwest (FSSW). Puck drop is scheduled for 6:30 PM CST from the Canadian Tire Centre in Kanata.
Records and Scores
The Dallas Stars are heading down a very dangerous road they would like to reverse. The team is playing some of their best hockey of the season yet aren’t being rewarded for their good work. The Stars grossly outplayed recent opponents Winnepeg, Montreal, Colorado, and Boston, but were unable to come away with even a single point in any of those contests. They have all of a sudden lost 7 of their last 10 and currently sit six points back of the Calgary Flames for the final wild card spot in the Western conference.
The Ottawa Senators will begin their second half of the season tonight as they take on the Stars. The Senators have not played since beating the Toronto Maple Leafs on January 21st . The Senators are 4-4-2 in their last 10 games and 19-18-9 on the season (47 points). They currently sit in 10th place in the Eastern conference but are a full ten points back of the Boston Bruins for the second wild card spot.
Storylines
I’m Coming Home
In tonight’s matchup there will only be one storyline: the return of longtime Senator Jason Spezza. Spezza was drafted by the Senators 2nd overall in the 2001 draft and spent 11 seasons in Ottawa. As a Senator Spezza accumulated 251 goals and 436 assists for 687 points. He led them to the Stanley Cup finals in 2007, became part of one of the most dominant lines in the league alongside Daniel Alfredsson and Dany Heatley, and also served as captain of the team after Alfredsson left via free agency in 2013. This past summer Spezza asked for a trade out of Ottawa and landed in Dallas on July 1st. Spezza had served the Senators admirably for 11 seasons and earned the right to control his own playing destiny. He was a fan favourite during his entire time in Ottawa, although some fans believe his legacy was tarnished when he asked for a trade. It will be interesting to see the kind of reaction Spezza gets from the hometown crowd tonight. You would think he deserves nothing but cheers, but who knows what to expect from the Senator faithful?
Injury Report
The Dallas Stars will be without the usual cast of characters tonight that includes Rich Peverley (Heart), Patrik Nemeth (Arm), and Val Nichushkin (Hip). However, Brett Ritchie (Undisclosed) and Erik Cole (Upper-Body) look close to returning and could be available for the Stars tonight.
The Senators will be without Zack Smith tonight (Wrist) and potentially Mark Borowiecki (Leg) who is listed as day-to-day.
Projected Lines
Dallas Stars
Jamie Benn- Tyler Seguin- Patrick Eaves
Ales Hemsky- Jason Spezza- Brett Ritchie
Antoine Roussel- Cody Eakin- Ryan Garbutt
Shawn Horcoff- Vernon Fiddler- Colton Sceviour
Alex Goligoski- John Klingberg
Trevor Daley- David Schlemko
Jordie Benn- Jason Demers
Kari Lehtonen
Anders Lindback
Ottawa Senators
Milan Michalek- Kyle Turris- Mark Stone
Clarke MacArthur- Mika Zibanejad- Bobby Ryan
Mike Hoffman-J.G. Pageau- Curtis Lazar
Erik Condra-David Legwand- Chris Neil
Marc Methot- Erik Karlsson
Jared Cowen- Cody Ceci
Mark Borowiecki-Patrick Weircioch
Robin Lehner
Craig Anderson
Prediction
The Dallas Stars will break their curse of being outplayed by the opposing netminder tonight and gather two points against the Ottawa Senators. Robin Lehner looks to be the one between the pipes for the Senators tonight and he gave up 5 goals to the Stars just over a week ago. Jason Spezza’s return is a success as he picks up a powerplay assist and the Dallas Stars beat the Ottawa Senators 3-1.
How do you think Jason Spezza will be received by the Senators fans tonight? Cheers? Jeers?