ABBREVIATED GAME PREVIEW: STARS VS. WILD
Lindy Ruff's Dallas Stars (13-4-0) will face a good test on Saturday night, when they play host to Mike Yeo's Minnesota Wild (10-3-2). Game time at the American Airlines Center is 7:00 p.m. CDT.
This is the first of five meetings between the Central Division rivals, and the first of two in Dallas. The teams will rematch on Nov. 21 and Dec. 21 in St. Paul, then Jan. 9 in Dallas. The season series will conclude on Feb. 9 with a game in St. Paul. Last year, the Wild claimed four of five games against the Stars.
The Stars enter this game coming off a convincing 6-3 win over the Winnipeg Jets on Thursday. Dallas got uneven goaltending from Kari Lehtonen but otherwise got the better of the play most of the night. The Wild are in the second-game of a four-game road trip. The Wild have won three games in a row, including a 3-2 overtime win against the Carolina Hurricanes in Raleigh on Thursday. Devan Dubnyk, who played very well in the Carolina game is expected to make his fourth consecutive start.
Patrick Eaves has been activated from IR by the Stars and is available to play on Saturday. Ales Hemsky has been playing through a nagging injury but resting on practice days. Jyrki Jokipakka has also been dealing with a physical issue, which enabled Jamie Oleksiak to get into the Dallas lineup.