After eight games at home at the American Airlines Center, the Dallas Stars need a change of scenery for a day. The team has decided to take a day trip up to Minnesota to enjoy the wilderness and take on the Wild. In my opinion, this is a crucial game that the Stars need to win in order to keep the Wild from catching up to them in the standings. They need two points here tonight, with no exceptions. Here are the three keys of the game for the Stars as they take on the Wild for the final time this season.
Dallas Stars vs Minnesota Wild Preview: 3. Get it together on the power play
The Stars mainly focused on their power play execution during practice Thursday before packing up for their trip later in the afternoon. If they get into another 5 on 3 situations against the Wild, they need to put the puck in the back of the net. That’s an automatic goal in hockey that should be capitalized on every time. For every power play a team doesn’t convert on, their opponent can ride the momentum of killing it off and go on to win the game.
Dallas Stars vs Minnesota Wild Preview: 2. Play all three periods
The one thing that has killed me watching the Stars the last couple of games is their ability to “turtle” when they have the lead in the third period. You can’t do that against teams with the caliber of Tampa Bay and Boston. The Minnesota Wild is another team that the Stars cannot turtle against because of how good their young players are that can turn a game around in a matter of minutes. The Stars need to play all the way through the final horn and earn two points.
Dallas Stars vs Minnesota Wild Preview: 1. Time to get some room away from Winnipeg
The Stars got help from the Columbus Blue Jackets as they beat the Winnipeg Jets 3-1. That Blue Jackets win helped the Stars keep first place in the Central Division. With Winnipeg having the day off on Friday, the Stars can start separating themselves from the Jets with back-to-back games this weekend. They need to get four points in the next two days, with no exceptions.
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