STARS @ PANTHERS GAME PREVIEW
Looking for back-to-back wins in the Sunshine State and two more vital points in the battle for the final Western Conference wildcard spot, the Dallas Stars (38-28-11) take on the Florida Panthers (27-43-8) late on Sunday afternoon. Game time is 4 p.m. CDT. The match will be televised locally on TXA-21 and in Canada on NHL Network Canada.
This is the second and final meeting between the teams this season. Back on Oct. 3, the Panthers came to American Airlines Center and upended the Stars by a 4-2 count.
The Stars enter this game coming off a 5-2 win in Tampa Bay. A pair of first period goals by Jamie Benn and one by Tyler Seguin staked the Stars to a quick three-goal lead. Kari Lehtonen, who appears likely to get the call again rather than former Panthers goalie Tim Thomas, stopped 27 of 29 shots.
Florida brings a five-game losing streak into this game and has dropped eight of its last nine. The Panthers have been in a major goal-scoring drought, tallying just 12 goals in that span. The only Florida player who has been reasonably productive offensively of late has been Brandon Pirri (10 points in the last 14 games, points in each of the last three games).
There is a chance that Jonathan Huberdeau (concussion) could return to the Panthers lineup for this game. Rookie Aleksander Barkov (knee) remains out of the lineup but could return before the conclusion of the Panthers' season next weekend. He has resumed skating.
On the Dallas injury front, Ray Whitney (lower body) is out. So is spare defenseman Aaron Rome (lower body). Rich Peverley (heart surgery) is out for the season.