PREVIEW 8:45 AM EST
The Flyers (43-19-8) conclude their three-game road trip tonight when they take on the Dallas Stars (38-25-8) at the American Airlines Center. This is the second of two meetings between the clubs this season. The clubs met on Feb. 5 at the Wells Fargo Center, with the Flyers prevailing, 3-1.
At the time of the last game the Stars were in first place in the Pacific Division. However, the Stars were in the midst of their worst slump of the season and had just come off a physically brutal, fight-filled loss in Boston the night before. The Flyers, meanwhile, were rested and coming off a win against Nashville.
In that game, Brian Boucher made 30 saves, while Kari Lehtonen (29 saves) saw his career record against the Flyers fall to 0-10-1. Andrej Meszaros sent the Flyers off leading 1-0 after the first period with a goal at the 18:40 mark. Darroll Powe made it 2-0 with a shorthanded goal at 1:19 of the second period. Stars captain Brenden Morrow cut the deficit to one goal with 8:53 remaining in the middle stanza. The clubs battled evenly in the third period until Jeff Carter sealed the game with an empty net goal.
Heading into tonight's game, both clubs should have plenty of motivation.
For the Stars, who are in sixth place in the Western Conference (one point behind fifth-ranked Los Angeles but just two points ahead of ninth-place Nashville), every game is a must-win. The club is coming off a resounding 5-0 win on Thursday against Chicago on the heels of heartbreaking home regulation losses to Los Angeles and San Jose.
Against the Kings, the Stars rallied from a 2-0 deficit to tie the game in the final minute of play only for ex-Flyer Michal Handzus to come back on the next shift and score the game winner. In the Sharks game, Dallas built a 2-0 lead in the second period only to see the Sharks tie the game by the end of the stanza and add three more goals (two of the ENG variety) in the third period en route to a 6-3 decision. But Dallas bounced back with a dominating two-way performance and excellent goaltending from Lehtonen in the Chicago game. Overall, the Stars are 6-2-2 in their last 10 games.
The Flyers are just 4-4-2 in their last 10 games but have earned points in five straight games (3-0-2). In the two losses, the Flyers blew a three-goal lead and lost in overtime to Atlanta and then erased three one-goal deficits in the rematch in Atlanta only to go on to lose in a shootout. With the Washington Capitals pulling even in points with the Flyers in the battle for Eastern Conference standings, it's crucial that the Flyers take two points tonight into their head-to-head clash with the Caps at the Wells Fargo Center on Tuesday.
Following is an overview of tonight's opponent, geared toward Flyers readers. Over on the Stars blog, I have an overview of the Flyers.
*****
The Stars have been one of the NHL's most resilient teams this season. Despite lingering uncertainty over the ownership future of the team, a wave of injuries after the All-Star break, constant pre-deadline trade rumors surrounding Brad Richards and a major losing streak bookending the ASB, the club has found ways to keep on battling.
Any opponent that plays against the Stars had better be ready to play hard, focused hockey for 60 minutes. Dallas rarely quits on games. The Stars lead the NHL in comebacks when trailing after two periods, boasting 9 wins as well as 3 OT/SO losses.
By comparison, the Flyers' late-game comeback against Atlanta was a relative rarity for the team this season. Philly has managed just four third-period comebacks this season, winning once (1-14-3). The Flyers have had problems protecting multiple-goal leads this season but they still have a 23-2-3 record when leading after the first period and a 34-1-4 record when leading after the second period.
Playing from behind against the Stars is rarely advisable, either. Dallas is 23-1-1 (second best winning percentage in the NHL) when leading after one period and are 20-0-3 when leading after the middle stanza.
All-Star center Brad Richards has had a cautious return from a concussion. He is coming off a strong game against Chicago. Overall, he has one goal and four points in the five games since his return. He has had to adapt to new linemates, as his pre-All Star unit with James Neal (traded to Pittsburgh in the Alex Goligoski deal) and fellow All-Star selection Loui Eriksson (upper body injury) is no longer intact.
Eriksson suffered a possible concussion in the San Jose game this past Tuesday as the result of a borderline elbow from Sharks defenseman Douglas Murray. The team has yet to confirm that he has a concussion but with each passing day he misses, that diagnosis appears more and more likely. He is out for tonight's game, and the Stars are going to miss his excellent two-way play in addition to his 23 goals and 63 points.
In addition, the Stars are going to be without third-line center Adam Burish. The club is
just 1-8-2 in games that Burish has been absent this season (including the first game in Philadelphia). He will miss his third straight game after suffering a lower body injury blocking a shot.
By far, the Stars'
best player since the All-Star break has been Jamie Benn. On a game-in and game-out basis, he has been playing tremendous hockey. He moves between all four lines and shuttles between wing and center without skipping a beat, plays excellent two-way hockey and has been on an offensive tear.
The 21-year-old Benn has also emerged as one of the prime shorthanded scoring threats in the league. He brings a nine-game point streak into this tilt. Over that span, he has racked up eight goals and five assists. Most of the goals have been go-ahead or game-tying goals and two have been game winners. A couple have been highlight reel scores. The Flyers had better pay close attention to him tonight.
The Stars' other two primary offensive threats up front are veteran team captain Brenden Morrow and former Canadiens center Mike Ribeiro. With all the injuries in the lineup this season -- at one point last month, Dallas was missing six regulars from the lineup -- Morrow (27 G, 7 PPG) has been the glue that has held the team together. Whether it's a goal, a timely hit or a fight geared toward stirring up some emotion on his team, Morrow is still a top-notch player and leader. Meanwhile, the streaky Ribeiro has three goals and six points in his last five games.
Stars' opponents cannot allow themselves to get distracted by the antics of Steve Ott. Especially when his unit with Burish has been intact, the Stars' third line has been a pain to play against, with its aggressive and edgy -- sometimes dirty -- physical play and constant yapping. Ott has also contributed some timely supporting offense (11 goals) in addition to the 183 penalty minutes that he racked up. I fully expect to see Ott and Dan Carcillo renew hostilities tonight.
Jamie Langenbrunner has chipped in 5 goals and 15 points in 28 games since his re-acquisition from the Devils (he had 4 goals and 14 points in 31 games with New Jersey prior to the deal). He has one goal and three points in his last five games. His tally against the Kings tied the game in the final minute of regulation prior to Handzus re-claiming the lead and victory for LA.
On the back line, Marc Crawford finally has an intact starting unit. He changed around the pairings in the Chicago game to reunite big, defensive minded Nicklas Grossman (who had missed a couple weeks with a hip issue) with underrated veteran Stephane Robidas. Meanwhile, the small, offensive-minded Goligoski moved the second pairing with shot-blocking specialist Karlis Skrastins. The third pairing now consists of Trevor Daley with former Flyers first-round pick Jeff Woywitka. Mark Fistric has become the odd man out in the defensive rotation.
The Stars' defense is not generally a very physical unit. If an opponent can get the puck in deep and set up shop around the net, there is a going chance of creating turnovers and scoring chances in close.
In goal, Lehtonen has been a workhorse and, apart from a bout of back spasms in December, has finally managed to remain healthy this season. The big, athletic goalie has quietly started to live up the potential that made him such a highly touted prospect when he was coming up in the Atlanta system. Nevertheless, he has never had any success against the Flyers. Backup Andrew Raycroft desperately needs some work, having not played a single minute since Feb. 19. In that tilt one month ago, he allowed 5 goals on 33 shots against his former Vancouver Canucks teammates.
Early this season, the Stars were clicking regularly on the power play at home but scuffling on the road. More recently, they've struggled on the man advantage no matter where the game has been played. The penalty kill has been decent when the key personnel has been healthy, and not very good at all when there have been regulars missing.
Overall, the Stars have scored on 17.6 percent of their power plays and killed off 79.8 percent of their penalties.
Philadelphia Flyers Blogger •NHL.com • 
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