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Pregame Notes (13): Stars Head to Canada to Take on High-Flying Jets

taylor newby
·3 min read

The Dallas Stars head north to take on the Winnipeg Jets in a matinee game between two of the top teams in the Central Division.

The Stars are coming off a 3-1 win over the Chicago Blackhawks to bounce back after a disappointing two losses in Tampere, Finland when the Stars played the Florida Panthers in the NHL's Global Series. Dallas has had a fairly easy schedule so far outside of facing the defending Stanley Cup champions, but today's game against Winnipeg, who is first in the league, will be a good measuring stick for the Stars.

The Jets are coming off a low-scoring 1-0 win against the Colorado Avalanche and have moved to 13-1-0. They are only the second NHL team to ever win 13 of their first 14 games in a season. Goaltender Connor Hellebyuck has recorded back-to-back shutouts coming into today's game, making 35 saves in the win against the Avs. Gabe Vilardi scored the only goal of the game very early in the first period, and it was a goaltending show for the rest of the game.

New Jets coach Scott Arniel has taken over the reigns for former Dallas Stars head coach Rick Bowness, who retired after two seasons in charge of Winnipeg. Bowness took the Jets to the playoffs both seasons, but flamed out in the first round each time. Arniel has made the transition look seamless, and Winnipeg looks much more dangerous offensively in the early going this season.

If Dallas wants to show that they are going to challenge for the division title for a second year in a row, this game will make an early statement that the Stars will not allow the Jets to run away with it. Obviously, the Jets point pace is unsustainable, but Winnipeg has looked like a complete team and could be on the verge of putting it all together. The key for the Jets is to figure out how to sustain that completeness through the entire season and keep it going into the postseason, where they have had very limited success through the years.

What to watch for:

  • Tyler Seguin has recorded seven points in his last five games, including four goals and three assists. He also has ten points in eight games on the season, though he has missed some games due to a lingering injury the coaching staff is trying to manage. Seguin has recorded seven points in his last 10 games against the Jets.

  • Wyatt Johnston still looks to finally get going after a slow start this season. He has recorded six points in 12 games, including one goal and five assists, but has not shown the production that he had through the end of last season that carried into the playoffs. Last season, Johnston was by far the Stars best forward. Head coach Pete DeBoer has had some trouble solidifying which line combinations work the best so far, but the team has been able to win consistently even without their star players hitting top production levels yet.

Puck drop is at 2 p.m. CDT and can be seen on Victory+ locally and ESPN+ in out of market areas.

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