The Dallas Stars sure had a weekend to forget. Losing to the Pittsburgh Penguins was brutal but losing to the Minnesota Wild was even more embarrassing because we helped them inch closer to a playoff spot. The Stars look to forget all of that tonight as they take on the Vancouver Canucks. The Stars have a chance to clinch home-ice advantage in the first round of the playoffs tonight with a win of any kind. That means even winning in OT or a shootout.
The Stars also received some good news about Tyler Seguin today. He's on the verge of taking contact during practice since the last time he played in 2024. The Stars will need his scoring ability, especially if Gabriel Landeskog is healthy for the Colorado Avalanche come playoff time. The Stars need to correct their defense on the blue line, or else home-ice advantage won't mean anything to them. Here are the four keys to the game tonight against the Canucks at the American Airlines Center.
Dallas Stars vs. Vancouver Canucks Preview: 4. Focus
The Stars can't get caught looking to Thursday's game tonight. They need to win out to have a shot at clinching the Central Division this season. They have to play the Canucks tonight like it's game one against the Colorado Avalanche tonight. That means shutting down their best scorer and helping Casey DeSmith redeem himself from the Penguins game. I want to see the Stars make it up to him for how they left him to dry last week. If the Stars focus at the task at hand tonight, they should beat the Canucks.
Dallas Stars vs. Vancouver Canucks Preview: 3. Just score
The Stars need to get the puck to the front of the net and ambush the Canucks's goaltender tonight. I don't care who ends up scoring tonight, just ambush their goalie until they break the wall. If the Stars want a long playoff run this season, they have to play unselfishly tonight. That doesn't mean one player hogs the puck during a shift. They have to play like their slogan, "A little less for a lot more." There is no need for any of the players to pad their regular season stats tonight, just win the game by any means.
Dallas Stars vs. Vancouver Canucks Preview: 2. Shut down Brock Boeser
The Stars need to shut down Brock Boeser tonight if they want any chance of winning the Central Division this season. Boeser has 25 goals and 24 assists coming into tonight's game against the Stars. Thomas Harley needs to lock in on him and take him out of the equation tonight. I don't mean to go out there and intentionally injure him; I want to shut down his ability to score tonight. The Stars have a good chance of winning if Boeser is taken out of the equation tonight.
Dallas Stars vs. Vancouver Canucks Preview: 1. Be angry
I want to see a ticked-off Dallas Stars team tonight. There should be no excuse to blow these whales out of the water tonight. The Stars had a chance to close the gap in the Central Division this weekend, and they blew it. I want to see Dallas have a fire lit underneath them tonight, which shows they still have the passion to win the Stanley Cup this season. It wasn't evident this weekend in either of the games. If the Stars can find that passion again, the Stars blow the Canucks out of the water tonight.