Sabres at Stars
The Dallas Stars have quietly been one of the league’s hottest teams in March and look to extend their winning streak to three when they host the Buffalo Sabres on Monday. The Stars have won seven of their last nine games since losing to Anaheim to open the month and have allowed just one goal in the last two, including a 4-0 victory over Chicago on Saturday. Dallas will try to take advantage of Buffalo, which owns the least points in the league and has one victory in the last 10 contests.
The Stars have improved on the defensive end over the last six games while yielding just 10 goals combined, but still trail Winnipeg by eight points for the final wild-card spot in the Western Conference. “We put ourselves in a tough spot,” Dallas coach Lindy Ruff told reporters of the playoff race. “. … It’s going to be agonizing, but we just have to keep taking care of our end.” The Stars must avoid a letdown and be alert after dropping a 3-2 decision at Buffalo last month.
TV: 8:30 p.m. ET, MSG-B and Bell TV (Buffalo), FSN Southwest (Dallas)
ABOUT THE SABRES (20-45-7): The lowest-scoring team in the league, Buffalo managed only two goals in the last three games and have 11 in nine contests this month. Tyler Ennis leads the team with 18 goals and 39 points - six in the last eight games - while Matt Moulson is next with 36, including five in the past six. Defenseman Zach Bogosian, who had four assists and a plus-3 rating in 12 games since being acquired in the major trade with Winnipeg, could miss his sixth straight contest with a lower-body injury.
ABOUT THE STARS (34-28-10): Goalie Kari Lehtonen has allowed two or fewer goals in six of his last eight outings and is 6-1-0 in his past seven decisions, including his fifth shutout Saturday. “It’s a combination of the team playing better in front of him and getting himself on a little bit of a roll which you’ll see goaltenders do,” Ruff told reporters. “Everything sort of feeds off of each other.” Captain Jamie Benn has five points in the last five games to leads the team with 67, three better than Tyler Seguin – two goals last four games.
OVERTIME
1. Dallas' John Klingberg has 26 assists, most among rookie defensemen in the league.
2. Buffalo G Anders Lindback, who started the season with Dallas, boasts a .930 save percentage in eight outings with the Sabres.
3. The Stars have a better record on the road (19-14-2) than at home (15-14-8), but have won two in a row in their own building.