Stars tuning, healing up for postseason vs. future-looking Rangers
The Dallas Stars play their final home game of the regular season Saturday when they host the New York Rangers.
Dallas has won three of four games on its homestand so far. The Stars (47-20-12, 106 points) won 5-4 on Thursday over Minnesota the same team they'll face in round one of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Mikko Rantanen and Jason Robertson both scored in the third period to lift their team, which trailed 3-1 in the second period and 4-3 entering the third.
They have a four-point lead over Minnesota in the Central Division standings, and both teams have three games remaining, meaning the Stars can lock up home-ice for the series with a win over New York.
Rantanen returned to the ice on March 28 after sustaining an injury playing for Finland in the Winter Olympics in February. He has seven points (two goals, five assists) in those seven games.
Injuries have been an issue for the Stars, but one they have been able to overcome. However, defenseman Miro Heiskanen's status is uncertain after he left Thursday's win with 3:23 remaining in the opening period due to a lower-body injury. The team has not updated his availability for Saturday's game.
The Finnish blueliner, who ranks fourth on the team with 63 points and is tied with his Olympic teammate for the team lead in assists (54), was set to get an MRI on Friday.
Team GM Jim Nill also said Friday that forward Roope Hintz will not play in the final three regular-season games and that his status for the first game of the first round remains uncertain. Hintz went down with a lower-body injury during a March 6 game against Colorado after tussling with Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon along the boards.
"We'll get a better read here," Nill told the Dallas Morning News. "We're kind of just going week by week with him and seeing where he's at."
While the Stars look to get healthy for the postseason, the Rangers will be wrapping up their disappointing season with the first of three straight road games.
New York lost its home finale 5-3 to Buffalo on Wednesday, with the Sabres scoring three third-period goals to rally from a 3-2 deficit.
The Rangers (33-37-9, 75 points) own the worst record in the Eastern Conference and are the only Metropolitan Division team that has fewer than 83 points.
Despite the losing record, the Rangers still have one of the better goalies in the league. Igor Shesterkin has started 50 games, posting a 25-18-6 record. His 2.53 goals-against average is seventh-best in the league and his .911 save percentage is tied for sixth among NHL netminders.
Alexis Lafreniere scored twice in Wednesday's loss. The forward, 24, is second behind Mika Zibanejad (33) in goals with 24 and is four away from tying his career high.
Even though the Rangers' season wraps up in less than a week, coach Mike Sullivan told reporters after practice Friday that the road trip will be beneficial for the squad's younger players, such as rookies Noah Laba and Gabriel Perreault.
"We're going into some hard buildings, playing some real good teams," the veteran coach said. "I just think with every game that these guys play, they get a little bit more experiential learning.
After Dallas, the Rangers visit the Florida Panthers on Monday and the Tampa Bay Lightning on Wednesday.
"There's so many different ways you can learn, but I think these types of situations are good opportunities for us," Sullivan added.