26-17-7, 59 points | 28-17-4, 60 points
Projected Lines
Hyman-Matthews-Marner Kerfoot-Tavares-Nylander Johnsson-Engvall-Kapanen Moore-Gauthier-Spezza Muzzin-Holl Dermott-Barrie Sandin-Ceci Andersen | Benn-Seguin-Radulov Gurianov-Hintz-Pavelski Cogliano-Faksa-Comeau Janmark-Dickinson-Perry Oleksiak-Heiskanen Lindell-Polak Sekera-Klingberg Bishop |
Scratches
Martin Marincin Dmytro Timashov Tyler Gaudet |
Code:
| Justin Dowling Stephen Johns Taylor Fedun |
TOR
?Andersen (23-9-6, 2.86 GAA, .910 Sv%) will likely start for the Leafs
?This game, which definitely takes place in January, would be a big opportunity for the Leafs to catch up to the teams they're chasing for a playoff spot. Florida, Columbus, Carolina, and Philly are all on their bye weeks right now
?Kapanen took part in Tuesday's practice and it looks like he'll be available to play after leaving Monday's game with an arm injury
?Spezza comes to Dallas for the first time after spending 5 seasons with the Stars. He'll almost certainly play, because what kind of psychopath scratches a legit NHL forward for no reason in a game that clearly means a lot to the player
DAL
?Bishop (17-10-3, 2.27 GAA, .927 Sv%) will likely start for the Stars
?The PHWA had Bishop finishing 2nd for the Vezina in their midseason awards. While GMs vote for the actual Vezina trophy, Bishop seems poised to be named a finalist for the award for the 2nd straight season
?Dallas hasn't let the surprising dismissal of coach Jim Montgomery derail their season. Their points percentage has actually improved from .597 to .639 under new head coach Rick Bowness
?Goaltending and defence have been leading the way in Dallas. They sit 1st in GA/GP but 28th in GF/GP. Those numbers have been pretty consistent under both coaches
?Tyler Seguin leads the team with just 37 points in 49 games. That's an 82-game pace of 61 points. Seguin hasn't scored less than 72 points in a season since he was traded to Dallas in 2013
?Jamie Benn is on pace for just 41 points this season, which would tie his previous career low in points when he scored 41 in his rookie season
?Continuing with the theme of under-performing forwards, Pavelski is on pace for just 31 points this season. The Stars probably weren't expecting the 35-year old forward to have the worst season of his career after signing him to a 3-year, $21mil contract this past summer
Injuries
?Kasperi Kapanen - Arm - Probable Wednesday ?Ilya Mikheyev - Wrist - Injured Reserve ?Morgan Rielly - Foot - Injured Reserve |
Code:
| ?Roope Hintz - Upper Body - Questionable Wednesday ?Andrew Cogliano - Lower Body - Questionable Wednesday ?Martin Hanzal - Back - Out for season |