Stars at Blue Jackets
The Dallas Stars are holding a slim two-point edge for the final wild-card slot in the Western Conference but they will face an opponent that is playing well when they visit the Columbus Blue Jackets on Tuesday night. Dallas improved to 5-1-1 in its last seven games by edging the Buffalo Sabres 3-2 on Monday night to move two points clear of Vancouver for the No. 8 seed. It will mark the first of two matchups between the Stars and the Blue Jackets over the next seven days.
Columbus is coming off an impressive 2-1 win in Toronto on Monday night to complete a season sweep of the series and snap the Maple Leafs' seven-game home winning streak. Artem Anisimov ran his goal-scoring streak to a season-high three games to back a strong effort in net from Sergei Bobrovsky in his eighth consecutive start. The reigning Vezina Trophy winner would appear to be in line for a night off due to the heavy workload and a back-to-back, but he owns a 4-0-1 lifetime record against the Stars.
TV: 7 p.m. ET, FSSW (Dallas), FSH Ohio (Columbus)
ABOUT THE STARS (29-22-10): Dallas coach Lindy Ruff said Dan Ellis would be in goal for one game of the back-to-back, giving the backup netminder his first start since Feb. 1 - a 2-0 shutout at league-leading Anaheim. Ellis has fared exceptionally well against the Blue Jackets in his career, posting a 5-2-1 record with a 1.67 goals-against average and a pair of shutouts. The Stars need to get their power play going - Alex Chiasson's game-winning goal against Buffalo was just the team's second in the last 31 chances with the man advantage.
ABOUT THE BLUE JACKETS (31-25-5): The one negative coming out of Monday's win was an injury to defenseman Ryan Murray, who did not return after appearing to hurt his left leg in the first period. The Blue Jackets are already thin along the blue line with Fedor Tyutin on injured reserve after suffering an ankle injury while playing for Team Russia at the Olympics. The Olympic break has cooled off leading scorer Ryan Johansen, who has collected only one assist in three games after scoring five goals in five games before the hiatus.
OVERTIME
1. Columbus won two of the three meetings against Dallas last season.
2. Stars captain Jamie Benn has six goals and nine assists in his last 12 games.
3. The Blue Jackets have killed off 53-of-60 penalties over the last 16 games.