The Stars are used to a tough schedule and coming out of the Christmas break will be another challenge on that front.
"We leave on a flight at 7 o'clock in the morning, practice in Chicago at 10:30 ... and then they throw a 6 o'clock game at us," Stars coach Dave Tippett said of his team's itinerary.
The Stars have to fly out Tuesday morning because under the CBA teams are not allowed to travel on Christmas Day, which is a restricted day under the agreement.
In fact, no teams are allowed to play the day after Christmas unless the "average scheduled flight time between the cities involved would not exceed two and one-half hours."
After the Chicago game the Stars will hop on the plane for a flight to Denver and a game on Wednesday night against the Avalanche.
"The schedule is what it is and we deal with it all the time," Tippett said. "I think our guys do a great job of blocking it out and playing."
The Stars coach said the team handles it likes all the other curve balls it is thrown during the course of a season.
"You almost treat it as an adversity you have to overcome and that is no different from other adversities in the game - injuries or what ever it may be," he said. "There's never an excuse for not winning."
Join the Discussion:
»