Off to an inconsistent start to the 2014-15 season, Lindy Ruff's Dallas Stars (4-2-4) will look to put together a more complete performance tonight when they travel to St. Paul to take on Mike Yeo's Minnesota Wild (6-3-0). Game time at the Xcel Energy Center is 7:00 p.m. CDT. The game will be televised locally on Fox Sports Southwest Plus.
This is the first of five meetings between the Stars and Wild this season, and the first of two in Minnesota. The clubs will see each other frequently this month, rematching on Nov. 15 and Nov. 28 at the American Airlines Center in Dallas. After a January 3 clash in Dallas, the teams will wrap up the season series with a February 22 game in St. Paul.
The Stars have not been playing good two-way of late. Last night, the club settled for one point in a 2-1 home overtime loss to the Anaheim Ducks.
The good news: Dallas' much-maligned team defense was sufficient on this night to limit the Anaheim Ducks to one regulation goal (plus a disallowed would-be goal) and 24 shots for the game. That's the good news, along with the fact that Dallas salvaged a point from the game on an Antoine Roussel goal in the third period off a tremendous pass from defenseman Trevor Daley.
The bad news: Dallas should have the rested and fresher team against an Anaheim club that played the previous evening and has been in a recent offensive funk. In trying to play a little better defensively, the Stars generated almost no offensive pressure through the first 40 minutes. Dallas managed a meager nine shots on goal in the first two periods -- just one in the entire second period -- but picked things up enough the rest of the way to finish with 22 shots.
Kari Lehtonen was solid enough in goal to stop 22 of 24 shots. However, Corey Perry's second-period goal off the line rush was not played very well by the goalie. With Perry shooting from just outside the right faceoff dot and Lehtonen out to challenge, the goaltender probably should have come up with a save despite Perry's heavy shot. Daley also did not defend the rush very well, as Perry gained a stride on him skating up the ice.
Lehtonen had no chance on the Ducks' game winner by Nate Thompson at 2:30 of overtime. With the Stars sagging back defensively after Cam Fowler carried the puck up the ice, Perry ripped a slapshot from high in the offensive zone. The puck was headed wide of the net but Thompson deflected it home.
Dallas had a miserable night on the power play, going 0-for-6 and actually getting outshot by the penalty killing Ducks by a 3-2 margin over the six advantages. On the bright side, the Stars killed off all four of their own minor penalties.
The Stars remain without right winger Valeri Nichushkin (hip/groin). The second year pro has been activated from injured reserve and is currently on a conditioning assignment to the AHL's Texas Stars. Veteran defenseman Sergei Gonchar (ankle) and rookie defenseman Patrik Nemeth (lost for the season with a severe forearm laceration) remain on IR.
It is now the Stars who are the team playing the second half of back-to-back games in two different cities while facing a more rested opponent who has been at home. The Wild are coming off a 4-3 win via shootout against the San Jose Sharks at the Xcel Energy Center on Thursday night. The Wild, who have staged successful multi-goal comebacks in each of their last games, were idle last night.
In the San Jose game, the Wild rallied from a 3-1 deficit in the third period to force overtime and eventually grab a bonus point from the skills competition. Kyle Brodziak (two goals in the third period) led the comeback. Mikko Koivu also scored for the Wild in both regulation and the shootout, while Jason Pominville tallied the winning goal in the shootout. Darcy Kuemper stopped 25 of 28 shots in regulation and overtime before stopping two of three shootout attempts. His stop on Patrick Marleau's shootout attempt ended the game.
On the injury front, Minnesota's blueline depth is being tested right now. Defenseman Jared Spurgeon (shoulder injury sustained in Thursday's game) is out of the lineup, along with fellow blueliner Keith Ballard (flu) and winger Matt Cooke (lower body). Standout defenseman Jonas Brodin (upper-body injury), rookie defenseman Christian Folin (flu) and forward Erik Haula (head) are all on day-to-day status and officially questionable for tonight.