The Dallas Stars look to finish their final regular season road trip with a bang against the dreaded Colorado Avalanche. Colorado has been the "big brother" against the Stars this season. That can't happen tonight because if the Avalanche win, they would be within one point of overtaking the Central Division. The Stars don't want another repeat of last season where the Avalanche overtook the Stars in the final week of the regular season to win the division.
Unfortunately, Mavrik Bourque was loaned back to the Texas Stars this morning. I expected the move after the final score from the Texas Stars game last night. With the Texas Stars needing a win to make the playoffs, Bourque can provide that extra boost on offense to clinch that playoff spot. He played great yesterday against the Chicago Blackhawks. He went out there and was attacking and getting to the net. He would have gotten his first career NHL goal if it wasn't for the officiating crew the Stars had.
Tyler Seguin should be back in the lineup tonight after sitting out against the Blackhawks. With him still recovering from an injury, sitting him out against a team fighting for the top pick in this year's NHL Draft was the right move. Craig Smith is another player that will be back in the lineup for the Stars. They will need his physicality to slow down the Avalanche's top two scorers, who I will get to in a bit. Here are the three keys of the game tonight against the Colorado Avalanche.
Dallas Stars vs. Colorado Avalanche: 3. Don't be sluggish
The Stars can't start tonight like they did yesterday against the Blackhawks. The Avalanche would bury the Stars by the end of the first period. Dallas needs to treat this like a playoff game since they might see the Avalanche in the second round of the Western Conference Playoffs. I want to see Dallas bombard the Avalanche goaltender with shot after shot for 60 minutes tonight. If the Stars can be aggressive instead of sluggish in the first period tonight, they might have a shot at winning tonight against the Avalanche.
Dallas Stars vs. Colorado Avalanche: 2. Shut down their top two players
Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar must be removed from the game tonight for the Stars to win tonight. I'm not asking for the Stars to go out on the ice and intentionally injure them. As the Stars did with Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, that's the same kind of defense needed in Denver. It's going to be tough keeping them out of the game for 60 minutes, but it can be done. If the Stars can shut down their top two players from dominating tonight, they should come away with a five-point lead in the Central Division.
Dallas Stars vs. Colorado Avalanche: 1. Just score
The Stars don't need to worry about who scores the first goal tonight. They need to score as many goals as they can before the start of the third period. The Avalanche are known for their third-period rallies this season. Getting a big cushion before the third period is crucial tonight. The Stars can't lead by two goals in the third period and coast to the finish line. If the Stars can get a good-sized goal cushion for Jake Oettinger tonight, the Stars should beat the Avalanche and inch closer to winning the Central Division.