It’s a clash for second place in the top-heavy, ultra-competitive Central Division when the Winnipeg Jets play host to the Dallas Stars on Tuesday.
Both clubs are tied behind the Colorado Avalanche, and both are looking to rebound from disappointing losses.
The Stars are on a 1-2-1 skid and are coming off a blown two-goal lead in their 7-4 home loss to the Flames on Friday. Calgary scored five unanswered goals, four in the third period.
“We weren’t great, we weren’t perfect by any means, but we had a chance to win that game in the third period,” Dallas coach Peter DeBoer said. “Just couldn’t put it together for 20 minutes, and that’s disappointing.”
The game is just the latest wacky affair for Dallas. The Stars blew a three-goal lead in a recent home loss to Colorado and scored six consecutive goals to beat the New York Rangers 6-3 in their next outing. Two games later, they were beaten by the Flames.
“I like large parts of what we’re doing,” DeBoer said. “I think our game has trended in the right direction, even though we’ve had some really ugly moments at different times. I like the commitment of our group, I like our team, I think we’re heading the right way. Being the hunted and handling that pressure, I don’t think we’ve shrunk from that or in those moments.”
The next moment is an early-season clash with a division rival.
“The best thing about hockey is every day is a new day,” Dallas captain Jamie Benn said. “As long as you’re learning and trying to get better, both individually and as a team, then you’re doing the right thing.”
The Jets saw their five-game winning streak snapped on Sunday when they spotted the Nashville Predators a three-goal lead and fell short in their comeback attempt in a 3-2 road loss.
“Give (Predators goalie Juuse) Saros a lot of credit, we came out of the gate hard,” Winnipeg coach Rick Bowness said. “Just great for 14 minutes, and I thought the last six minutes of (the first period) we started turning the pucks over when there was no need to turn pucks over inside their blue line.
“Then they got their game going. We got our game going because we were going north and we just kept pushing it back and taking what they were giving us, but the last six minutes of that period we started to try to make cute plays that just weren’t there.”
The Jets are well aware they must be at their best from start to finish against a rested and motivated Dallas squad. A half-level performance won’t do.
“I thought we played pretty good out of the gates and had a good push at the end,” Winnipeg forward Cole Perfetti said. “In the middle, in between there, we didn’t play great. They capitalized on a couple of their chances. Saros is a good goalie, he made some big saves. We got some good looks, the puck didn’t want to go early. We knew it was going to be a greasy one to break the seal.”
–Field Level Media
