Stars at Jets
On the one hand, there is plenty of optimism surrounding the Dallas Stars, who sit just three points behind Central Division-leading Chicago for first place in the Western Conference as they return from the All-Star break to face the host Winnipeg Jets on Tuesday. But Dallas stumbled into the break, going 3-6-1 in its final 10 games of the first half and scoring only 25 goals in 11 contests last month.
“It wasn’t a good month for us,” Stars center Jason Spezza admitted to reporters after Dallas edged Calgary 2-1 on Jan. 25. “We just got away from things for a little bit.” The Jets are in danger of having their postseason hopes disappear for good, as they sit nine points behind Nashville for the final wild-card spot in the West. A slew of injuries to forwards and miserable special-teams play contributed heavily to a 3-5-1 close to the first half, a stretch that started with a shootout loss at Dallas on Jan. 7. But coach Paul Maurice told reporters after Monday’s practice that Winnipeg has to focus on the game in front of it, saying “There’s no sense worrying about the second game because you’ve got to win that first one.”
TV: 8 p.m. ET, FSN Southwest (Dallas), TSN3 (Winnipeg)
ABOUT THE STARS (31-14-5): Dallas has won only five games since Christmas and opens the second half with eight of its first 11 contests away from home. The Stars still have firepower up front in captain Jamie Benn, who ranks second in the league in both goals (28) and points (58), and All-Star Tyler Seguin, who is third with 53 points, but have netted more than two tallies just twice in their last nine games. Antti Niemi is 18-9-5 with three shutouts but owns a .912 save percentage.
ABOUT THE JETS (22-24-3): Rookie Connor Hellebuyck likely will remain the team's top goaltender when Ondrej Pavelec recovers from a knee injury, as he ranks seventh in goals-against average (2.10) and ninth in save percentage (.927). But Winnipeg has surrendered 2.82 goals per game (25th in the league) and has struggled thanks in part to a special-team unit that ranks 27th on the penalty kill (77.2 percent) and 28th on the power play (15.9 percent). Mathieu Perreault (lower body) and Adam Lowry (upper body) practiced Monday and hope to play against Dallas.
OVERTIME
1. Winnipeg rookie RW Nikolaj Ehlers recorded a hat trick in the Jets' final game before the All-Star break, finishing the first half with four goals and two assists during a four-game point streak.
2. The Stars rank fifth in the NHL in power-play percentage (21.3 percent) - a big improvement from two seasons ago, when they were 23rd at 15.9 percent.
3. Dallas recalled 6-7 D Jamie Oleksiak from a conditioning assignment with Texas of the American Hockey League on Sunday.