GAME PREVIEW (1:00 PM CDT)
Coming off a disappointing followup to a rousing win on Thursday night, the Dallas Stars (3-3-0) are back in action tonight in the second half of their weekend road trip to California. Tonight, Dallas takes on the Anaheim Ducks (6-1-0). Game time is 7:00 p.m. Central. The match will be televised locally on Fox Sports Southwest.
This is the first of three meetings this season between the former Pacific Division rivals. Last season, the Stars managed a 2-2-1 record against the Ducks.
The Stars will return home for two games after tonight.
STARS OUTLOOK
The Stars went into the third period of last night's game in Los Angeles in good shape. The score was tied 2-2, and the Stars (after getting outplayed in the majority of the opening period) had been the better better in the middle frame.
Tyler Seguin (goal and assist) ran his point streak to six games last night, and linemates Jamie Benn (two assists) and Rich Peverley (goal and assist) figured in the scoring of both Dallas tallies last night.
Drew Doughty's early third period goal put the Kings ahead to stay, and LA went on to add a Kyle Clifford insurance goal with less than six minutes remaining in the period before a late-match empty netter sealed a 5-2 final. The Stars went 0-for-5 on the power play and yielded an LA power play goal to Justin Williams (his second goal of the first period) to go to the first intermission trailing rather than tied at 1-1.
Losers of three of their last four games and three in a row on the road, tonight's game is as close to a statement game as it gets for a team that has struggled on the back end of back-to-back games and is still without Kari Lehtonen (groin pull).
DUCKS OUTLOOK
Tonight game marks the finale of a five-game homestand for the Ducks. It has been highly successful so far, with Anaheim winning each of the first four. Overall, the Ducks carry a six-game winning streak into tonight.
On Friday night, the Ducks captured a 3-2 shootout win over the Phoenix Coyotes. Goaltender Jonas Hiller was stellar is turning back 32 of 34 shots in regulation and overtime while future Hall of Famer Teemu Selänne sparked the offense in regulation. Promising young Swedish forward Jakob Silfverberg scored the winning goal in the shootout.
The Ducks have been stellar defensively during their winning streak, allowing just five goals during their homestand to date. One of the team's few trouble spots has been a power play that has been AWOL all season (1-for-27 on the season, scoreless in its last 22 tries over the previous five games).
On Tuesday, the Ducks embark on an eight-game road trip that starts in Toronto.
On the Anaheim injury front, goaltender Viktor Fasth is day-to-day with a lower body injury. Former Stars defenseman Sheldon Souray (wrist), defensemanLuca Sbisa (ankle) and left winger Matt Beleskey (upper body) are all definitely out for tonight's game as well.
PROJECTED LINEUPS (Subject to change)
STARS
14 Jamie Benn - 91 Tyler Seguin - 17 Rich Peverley
13 Ray Whitney -20 Cody Eakin - 12 Alex Chiasson
43 Valeri Nichushkin - 10 Shawn Horcoff - 72 Erik Cole
16 Ryan Garbutt - 38 Vernon Fiddler - 21 Antoine Roussel
4 Brenden Dillon - 3 Stephane Robidas
33 Alex Goligoski - 55 Sergei Gonchar
24 Jordie Benn - 6 Trevor Daley
30 Dan Ellis
[1 Jack Campbell]
Scratches: Lane MacDermid (healthy), Kevin Connauton (healthy), Kari Lehtonen (IR, groin), Aaron Rome (AHL conditioning assigment), Scott Glennie (IR, knee).
DUCKS (per Dailyfaceoff.com)
Dustin Penner - Ryan Getzlaf - Corey Perry
Jakob Silfverberg - Mathieu Perreault- Teemu Selanne
Andrew Cogliano - Saku Koivu - Daniel Winnik
Kyle Palmieri - Nick Bonino - Emerson Etem
Francois Beauchemin - Hampus Lindholm
Bryan Allen - Sami Vatanen
Ben Lovejoy - Cam Fowler
Jonas Hiller
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