Pittsburgh Penguins @ Dallas Stars – Game Preview

The Dallas Stars have no room left for error and they have a tough test tonight when they host the Pittsburgh Penguins.  The Stars have won five of their past seven games, while the Penguins have lost three straight.  The puck is set to drop at 7:30pm CT and the game can be found on Fox Sports Southwest or 1310AM/96.7FM the Ticket.

Records and Scores

The Dallas Stars (32-28-10) have twelve games left on their schedule and they likely need to win at least ten of them.  Entering play on Thursday, they are 8 points back of the Winnipeg Jets who currently hold the final playoff spot.  The 1-3-0 record against the Jets this season is becoming more and more important.  The Stars have looked good lately, as they have won five of their past seven games.  They won the only previous meeting against the Penguins this season 3-2 in what was one of the best NHL games of the season.  They will need the same effort tonight as every game is must-win territory from here on out.

The Pittsburgh Penguins (39-21-10) have lost three straight and are now threatening to drop out of the top-3 spots in the Metropolitan Division.  They come into play just two points ahead of the Washington Capitals.  Overall, they are still nine points ahead of ninth place Ottawa, so it isn’t likely they will fall enough to drop out of the playoffs all-together.  Right now it is looking like the Penguins are headed towards a first-round matchup with the New York Islanders which would be must-see TV.

Storylines

Stars at their best when desperation strikes

We’ve seen it time and time again this season.  The opponent scores the first goal of the game and the Stars dominate the rest of the contest.  The opponent goes up by three goals only to see the Stars storm back late.  The Dallas Stars have been at their best this year when they find themselves trailing in the game.  Whether it translates into a win or not, they dominate a majority of the games they are trailing in.  Stars fans are hoping that desperation is found with twelve games left on the schedule.  They need that effort every single night moving forward and if they have it, they might just be able to sneak in the playoffs.

More from Dallas Stars News

• Dallas Stars Traverse City Tournament: Who had great performances?
• Grushnikov and Stankoven lead Dallas Stars to 6-3 win over Columbus
• Dallas Stars prospects look to wrap up tournament with a win
• Burn the tapes: Dallas Stars prospects lose 5-1 to Toronto Maple Leafs
• Dallas Stars look to continue success today against the Maple Leafs

Wounded Penguins

The Pittsburgh Penguins are the poster-team of playing through injuries and it seems like they are always doing it.  They are currently missing half of their top-6 forwards, as Evgeni Malkin, Patric Hornqvist, and Pascal Dupuis are all out with various injuries.  Promising young defensemen Olli Maata has also been out of the lineup for quite some time, as he hasn’t seen game-action since December.  With all that said, they still find themselves third in their division and will likely be in the postseason.  They have proven over the years to be one of the best teams in the league at fighting through injuries and finding ways to win.  This year has been no different for the Penguins.

Injury Report

For the Stars, Trevor Daley (lower body), Travis Moen (upper body), and Val Nichushkin (hip) are out.

As I mentioned above, the Penguins will be without Evgeni Malkin (lower body), Patric Hornqvist (undisclosed), Pascal Dupuis (blood clot), and Olli Maata (upper body).

Projected Lines

Dallas Stars

Jamie Benn – Cody Eakin – Tyler Seguin

Antoine Roussel – Jason Spezza – Ales Hemsky

Patrick Eaves – Vernon Fiddler – Colton Sceviour

Curtis McKenzie – Shawn Horcoff – Brett Ritchie

Alex Goligoski – John Klingberg

Jyrki Jokipakka – Jason Demers

Patrik Nemeth – Jordie Benn

Kari Lehtonen

Jhonas Enroth

Pittsburgh Penguins

Chris Kunitz – Sidney Crosby – David Perron

Beau Bennett – Brandon Sutter – Blake Comeau

Daniel Winnik – Nick Spaling – Steve Downie

Andrew Ebbett – Maxim Lapierre – Craig Adams

Paul Martin – Kris Letang

Christian Ehrhoff – Ben Lovejoy

Rob Scuderi – Ian Cole

Marc-Andre Fleury

Thomas Greiss

Prediction

The desperation shows tonight for the Dallas Stars, I expect.  Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin each get a goal and an assist as the Stars fly over the Penguins, 4-2.  Check back here for a postgame recap!