Dallas Stars: Benn, Stars doing just fine despite injury-plagued roster

The Dallas Stars have won the past three games in a row, and keep plowing ahead despite several roster injuries. Here is a recap of their past few games.

Jamie Benn has a hot stick—and it seems infectious throughout the home locker room in the American Airlines Center.

Benn leads the Stars with six points (4 G, 2 A) in the past five games. One of the four tallies was a wild deflection from in front of the net from Monday night’s game against the Edmonton Oilers.

Jamie has increased his 2018-19 point total to 24 points—12 goals, and 12 helpers—in 28 games. He is second on the team behind linemate Tyler Seguin, who has 26 (8 G, 18 A). Seguin has recorded four points of his own (1 G, 3 A) in the past five contests.

The Stars have been able to add points to their record in their past four games, with the most recent three being wins (against Calgary, Vancouver, and Edmonton), and tallying one point in an overtime loss in Edmonton on Nov. 27.

Other players on the Stars’ roster are following the Captain’s lead, as Jason Dickinson, Mattias Janmark, and Brett Ritchie have been able to land their names on the scoresheet.

Ritchie, who scored the second goal of the game and had an assist on Dickinson’s tally Monday night, was named the Stars’ Difference Maker of the Game.  He was also the first star of the game.

"“You want to be in the lineup every night, but obviously there’s a lot you can learn and a lot you can work on to make sure you’re ready,” Ritchie told Stars’ Inside Edge Mark Stepneski. “[I]t was just a matter of getting my legs under me early and getting back in the flow.”"

Ritchie now has three points (1 G, 2 A) while playing 15 games on the season.

Stars’ netminder Anton Khudobin has stepped up for the Stars as well, posting a 3-1-1 record in his past five games played. Here’s a brief glance of his stats over his past five.

1. Monday, Dec. 3 vs. EDM (W): saved 28 of 29 shots – .966 SV%
2. Wednesday, Nov. 28 @ CGY (W): saved 30 of 33 shots – .909 SV%
3. Tuesday, Nov. 27 @ EDM (OTL): saved 30 of 31 shots – .968 SV%
4. Saturday, Nov. 24 @ COL (L): saved 33 of 36 shots – .917 SV%
5. Friday, Nov. 23 vs. OTT (W): saved 29 of 33 shots – .879 SV%

Khudobin has a 6-5-2 record on the year, with a 2.71 GAA and a .915 save percentage.

With Dallas’ recent win against the Oilers, the Stars move to 15-10-3 on the season, with a strong three-point lead over the Minnesota Wild. The Stars are one point out from capturing third place from the Winnipeg Jets in the Central Division. Nashville and Colorado lead the division with 39 and 37 points, respectively.

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Central Division Standings

1. Nashville Predators – 39 PTS
2. Colorado Avalanche – 37 PTS
3. Winnipeg Jets – 34 PTS
4. Dallas Stars – 33 PTS
5. Minnesota Wild – 30 PTS
6. Chicago Blackhawks – 23 PTS
7. St. Louis Blues – 21 PTS

The past few games show that Dallas can keep moving forward, even if key players like Ben Bishop and John Klingberg are out of the lineup.

Fortunately enough for the Stars, it appears to be the case that injuries aren’t holding them back.

• Published on 12/04/2018 at 18:00 PM
• Last updated at 12/04/2018 at 15:49 PM