Slowing Stone, ahead rushing Hill on the Stars' agenda ahead of the clash in Vegas

The Vegas Golden Knights don't play in the Central Division. But a Dallas win on Thursday night would go a long way in keeping the momentum the Stars appear to have grasped over the last week or so. Dallas is above NHL .500 over their last 10 games for the first time since Jan. 1. That's how bad the month has been. Back-to-back wins - nail-biting as they may have been - over St. Louis have allowed the Stars to keep pace with surging Minnesota in the Central.

A win over Pacific-leading Vegas would provide Dallas with a three-game winning streak for the first time in five weeks and could, depending on the outcome of the Wild's game against the Flames on Thursday, allow the Stars to leapfrog their rival in the standings.

As to which Vegas is going to show up in Sin City, who knows? The Golden Knights have been just about as frustrating to their fans as Dallas has been to watch in the last month. After a five-game winless streak around New Year's, Vegas followed with a seven-game winning streak. Now, it's 1-3-1 in its previous five and carries just a one-point lead over Edmonton for the division lead.

Stars Need to Keep Mark Stone Quiet

Mark Stone's status as perhaps the No. 1 high-end player in the NHL that opposing fans love to hate is unquestioned. It's not only his demeanor, but that skill that makes him so annoying (or lovable, depending on one's perspective).

Stone has played in just 36 games, but his 52 points rank second on the team, and 21 of them have come on the power play, where the Golden Knights rank third in the West, behind the Oilers and Stars. Since the calendar turned to 2026, Stone has been on fire, registering 21 points in the month. He had a 14-game point streak that dated back to Dec. 29 before it was snapped two games ago against Ottawa. Stone hasn't scored since, and Vegas has lost both games.

Pavel Dorofeyev Should Draw Esa Lindell's attention

Winger Pavel Dorofeyev leads Vegas in goals with 24, and he's perfect lately, scoring eight in his last nine games. He parks in front of opposing goaltenders near the right post and isn't afraid of mucking things up in the crease.

That positioning will make him a prime target for Dallas' left defensemen, namely Esa Lindell, in the top pairing. Lindell doesn't throw hits, but he hasn't needed to, as he's made his way into the top 10 among the sport's best defensive defensemen.

Show Rasmus Andersson Was Not Needed

Prognosticators considered Dallas a potential landing spot for former Flames defenseman Rasmus Andersson before the Golden Knights picked him up via trade. He would have fit nicely as a right-handed shot who can play in all situations and typically ranks among the league leaders in blocks.

Andersson has a goal, an assist, nine shots, and seven blocks in three games since joining Vegas. With Noah Hanifin at his side, the duo provides the best combination of scoring punch and defense among the Golden Knights' three pairings. Dallas doesn't need to make Andersson look bad, per se, but a big fat minus on his box score at the end of the game would feel nice.

Pepper Adin Hill With Pucks

Vegas goalie Adin Hill has only made four starts since he missed 38 straight games from Oct. 20 to Jan. 15, so his sample size doesn't provide much with which to work.

But the expected No. 1 for the Golden Knights hasn't looked the part yet. Since returning from injury, he has a 4.26 goals-against average and .825 save percentage. And while as of the time of this writing,g he hadn't been named the starter for Thursday's game, he likely will be as Akira Schmid started Tuesday night at Montreal.