Dallas Stars try to regroup after meltdown loss in Nashville
Stars at Jets
7 p.m. Tuesday, MTS Centre, Winnipeg, Manitoba
Records: Stars 22-25,10, 54 points; Jets 25-29-4, 54 points
TV: FSSW Radio: KTCK/1310 AM and 96.7 FM
About the Stars: Dallas has to regroup after Sunday’s 5-3 meltdown loss at Nashville. The stinging defeat followed Saturday’s 5-2 home win over Carolina. The Stars led Nashville 3-0 after three power-play goals, but the Predators then scored five straight goals, starting at 15:25 of the second period. “It’s unacceptable,” Stars captain Jamie Benn said, via the Stars website. “We are fighting for our lives, and that’s what we put out there for the final 20 minutes?” Dallas has lost five of six games and is tied with Winnipeg at 54 points in the West race, six in back of Los Angeles for the second wild-card spot. With 24 games remaining, the push for the playoffs needs to start quickly, but the panic button won’t be pushed. Stars general manager Jim Nill told Sirius radio on Monday, via SB Nation, that despite being “decimated by injuries” all season, “the excuses don’t matter. ... We’ve got three more games before our bye week and after that we’re about 10 days away from the trade deadline (March 1). So I’m going to know in the next 10 days where we’re at ...”
About the Jets: Winnipeg finishes a four-game homestand Tuesday, and like the Stars, are in desperation mode but could get well against Dallas. Winnipeg has won the last three vs. Dallas for a 3-1 series lead. The Jets come off a 4-1 loss Saturday night in Winnipeg when they couldn’t produce many goal chances and were booed by some fans. “Our season is on the line here,” Jets forward Mathieu Perreault said, via The Associated Press. “It’s very disappointing the way we came out.” Winnipeg was outshot 14-8 in the first period Saturday. Center Mark Scheifele leds the Jets with 25 goals and 53 points.
This story was originally published February 13, 2017 at 5:13 PM with the headline "Dallas Stars try to regroup after meltdown loss in Nashville."