Game Preview: Glendening Makes His First Return To Detroit As Dallas Is Right Back At It Saturday

The 5-4 win over the Buffalo Sabres on Thursday night was a step in the right direction for the Stars. Although they made some big mistakes, they dominated play for the second straight game and scored enough goals to get two points on the road. The win snapped a seven-game road losing streak and was their first since Nov. 27.

“We gotta turn it around at some point here, don’t really care who we are playing. Tyler Seguin said. “Obviously, there was a lot of stuff we didn’t like tonight [Jan. 20] but we are happy to get a win. We gotta start somewhere, started tonight.”

Tonight, they face a better team in the Detroit Red Wings. While Detroit is far from a contender, they seemed to have turned the corner on their current full rebuild. They currently sit middle of the pack in the NHL and have dominated play on home ice this season.

Coming into play tonight, the Wings are 13-6-2 at home. They have won two games in a row, both victories over the Buffalo Sabres in a home-and-home series with their division rivals.

Tonight will not just be another game for Stars forward Luke Glendening, who makes his first return to Joe Louis Arena after playing his entire eight-year career with the Wings before being signed by Dallas last summer.

“The start of the game to be honest,” Glendening said when asked what he looks forward to most tonight. “There are so many other things going around but I am excited for the game to start.

For Dallas, it will be business as usual. The Stars have exceeded 45 shots in two straight games and have created plenty of scoring chances to win. The key for them tonight will be to convert on those chances.

“We have put ourselves in a little bit of a tough spot,” Glendening said. “We know the importance of every single game. I thought the group showed great resiliency yesterday after going down 2-0. We are going to continue to battle for each other. There is a belief in this room and we are going to continue to battle.”

On the other side of the ice, Dallas has struggled to keep the puck out of their net as of late. After allowing five on home ice to the 32nd place Montreal Canadiens on Tuesday, they allowed four goals to the struggling Sabres last night in Buffalo. The goals have all come on similar plays, with the Stars making costly mistakes up the ice.

As Razor said on the broadcast last night, “That is just not normally the way the Stars go about their business.”

And he is right. They have not looked like the same defensive team that smothers their opponents, keeps the attack to the outside, and sorts things out quickly when they do break down. If they can figure out a way to get back to their standard of puck management and rush defense, things should start to clean themselves up in that department.

The best news for Dallas heading into tonight is the fact that they seemingly have found two solid scoring lines. First, the top trio of Roope Hintz, Jason Robertson, and Joe Pavelski, that has been dominant all year, has welcomed back Robertson after missing two games with an injury. Behind them, Tyler Seguin, Jamie Benn, and Denis Gurianov started to take shape before the COVID pause and have really come on as of late.

Against Buffalo, Robertson and Seguin both tallied three points (2g, 1A). Seguin thrived in his familiar position after being swapped back to center ahead of Thursday’s game. His line was the best in the game, creating scoring chances from the time the puck dropped to the final horn. This balance of scoring should allow the Stars to have more success on the road, as opponents now have to choose which line they will try to shut down with their top defensive players.

The Hockey Writers: Stars’ News & Rumors: 1/21/22

The Stars will have a relatively fully healthy lineup once again on Friday, with only Alexander Radulov and Andrej Sekera remaining on the COVID list (Radulov tested negative and is eligible to play when ready).

Radulov skated again this morning and will be a game-time decision tonight. Braden Holtby will go right back in the net tonight after stopping 20 of 24 shots in Buffalo last night. With the amount of time he missed and the recent struggles of Jake Oettinger, Rick Bowness felt comfortable giving the veteran the start in the back-to-back.

“Sekera won’t play, Rads is a game-time decision, Bowness said this morning. “He skated this morning, we will see how he feels tonight. We are going to put Holtby right back in the net tonight. He hasn’t played much lately. He’s rested, he’s fresh, and he didn’t get a lot of work last night. He is feeling good about his game so we are going to put Holts right back in.”