Dallas Stars Aim To Extinguish Struggling Canadiens
By Josh Clark
The Dallas Stars will continue their Canada road trip tonight in Montreal when they take on the Canadiens. Get all the latest info on the game here.
The Dallas Stars have struggled over the past few weeks with finding ways to produce consistent wins. But over the past five days, they seem to have finally figured out how to consistently win and are on a two-game winning streak as a result. They will try and make it three when they visit the Montreal Canadiens tonight. This is the second and final meeting between the two teams, with the Stars winning 6-2 in the first.
The game will be broadcasted on Fox Sports Southwest (FSSW), and you can also hear it on 1310AM/96.7FM The Ticket. Puck drop is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec.
Records and Scores
The Dallas Stars seem to have finally submerged from dark times and are on a delicate two-game winning streak. Their record of 40-20-7 with 87 points is enough to put them in a tie for first place in the Central Division, and consequently, the Western Conference. Their most recent game comes as a narrow 2-1 victory over the Ottawa Senators on Sunday afternoon. They are 2-2-1 in their last five.
The Montreal Canadiens, on the other hand, have hit one of the sharpest declines out of any team throughout the league. After starting out on top with an NHL-best 9-0-0 record, the Canadiens progressively started down the downhill slope.
They are now 30-30-6 with 66 points, good enough for sixth in their division and nine points back from a wild card spot. Their most recent game comes as a 4-2 loss to the Winnipeg Jets. They are 1-3-1 in their last five contests.
Storylines
Stars taking hardships… well?
The Dallas Stars finally seem to have come around. They have emerged from the hopeless pit of despair that engulfed them through the end of February and it looks as though they are back in the driver seat of their own destiny. But how on earth are they doing this? At least, considering the given circumstances?
Right now, the Stars are currently missing F Patrick Sharp (two games), D Jordie Benn (two games), and D John Klingberg (one game). The thing is, Dallas has yet to lose with these players absent. That seems strange for a team that just broke out of a long losing funk. Nevertheless, the Stars are on a two game win streak and have a chance to make it three against the lowly Canadiens tonight, even when undermanned.
The Canadiens have gone from heroes to zeroes
What happened to Montreal? Around the end of October, they seemed like shoo-ins for the playoffs and even for the Stanley Cup Final. But since December 1, they have posted a humbling record of 12-26-3.
A mix of primarily key injuries and bad execution seem to be what buried the once promising Habs’ chances. The Canadiens have made the playoffs the past three seasons, winning their division two out of the three times. The superb goaltending skills of Carey Price have been an amusement to watch when playoff time rolls around. But this year, it looks like Price will be watching from home.
Injury report
The Dallas Stars will be missing F Patrick Sharp (lower body), D Jordie Benn (lower body), and D John Klingberg (lower body). F Patrick Eaves (pneumonia) is a game time decision.
The Montreal Canadiens are missing almost a complete roster. F Daniel Carr (knee), F Brendan Gallagher (lower body), G Carey Price (leg), F Brian Flynn (lower body), D Nathan Beaulieu (lower body), D Tom Gilbert (knee), D Jeff Petry (lower body), and F David Desharnais (foot) will all be missing from tonight’s lineup. F Alex Galchenyuk (upper body) and F Lars Eller (lower body) are both game time decisions.
Projected lines
Dallas Stars
Jamie Benn – Tyler Seguin – Brett Ritchie
Mattias Janmark – Jason Spezza – Valeri Nichushkin
Antoine Roussel – Cody Eakin – Ales Hemsky
Radek Faksa – Vernon Fiddler – Colton Sceviour
Patrik Nemeth – Jamie Oleksiak
More stars: Stars Bringing The Bennguin Back
Montreal Canadiens
Max Pacioretty – Alex Galchenyuk – Sven Andrighetto
Lars Eller – Tomas Plekanec – Stefan Matteau
Jacob De La Rose – Michael McCarron – Paul Byron
Torrey Mitchell – Phillip Danault – Mike Brown
Victor Bartley – Mark Barberio
Next: Antoine Roussel's Quiet Career Year
Prediction
It seems as though everything is lining up perfectly to give the Canadiens a dominant win against the Stars tonight. That’s just how this season has gone for Dallas so far.
But I like the Dallas Stars in this one. I have them knocking off the Canadiens 3-1 and jumping to three straight victories.