Stars at Canadiens
THE STORY: A pair of former Montreal forwards have had a significant hand in the Dallas Stars' fortunes this season. They'll look to burn their former team Tuesday when the Stars visit the Canadiens in a matchup of teams on the outside of their respective playoff pictures. Canadiens-turned-Stars forwards Mike Ribeiro and Michael Ryder have each scored four game-winning goals for Dallas this season, more than any current Montreal player not named Max Pacioretty. The Stars come into this one sitting 10th in the Western Conference, while the Canadiens are 13th in the East.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, RDS (Canadiens), FS Southwest (Stars)
ABOUT THE STARS (29-26-4): Ryder and Ribeiro will have to continue their strong play if the Stars have any chance of reaching the postseason. Star forward Jamie Benn has missed the last two games with a knee injury suffered Thursday against Calgary and won't be in the lineup Tuesday. Veteran winger Brenden Morrow will join him on the sidelines, missing his ninth game with an upper-body ailment. Benn may return Thursday in Chicago, while the Stars hope Morrow will be back in early March.
ABOUT THE CANADIENS (24-26-10): A slow start at home may ultimately be the club's undoing in its quest to qualify for the Stanley Cup tournament. Montreal couldn't get untracked at the Bell Centre in the opening month and a half and remains below .500 there, carrying an 11-13-8 mark into Tuesday's contest. They have the fewest home victories in the Eastern Conference, and with 11 of their final 24 games being played in Montreal, they're running out of time to make any significant improvement in their home fortunes.
OVERTIME:
1. The teams last met Dec. 21, 2010, when Dallas cruised to a 5-2 home victory. Their last meeting in Montreal came Jan. 14, 2010, a game Montreal won 5-3.
2. Dallas has been the worst team in the NHL when it comes to the second game of back-to-backs, going 0-9-2 in those situations. The Stars have three back-to-backs remaining.
3. Ryder has 10 points in his last 11 outings, while Ribeiro has nine points over that span.