STARS (21-23-10) at SENATORS (27-18-6)
7:30 p.m. ET; RDS2, TSN5, FS-SW+, NHL.TV
Stars team scope
The Dallas Stars, seven points out of the second wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Western Conference, will try to avoid a four-game losing streak. The Stars, ranked 29th in the NHL in goals against per game (3.17), have been outscored 12-7 in their past three games. "We just need to play better hockey and stop shooting ourselves in the foot," forward Jamie Benn said. "We need to play better defensively to win in this league. I've said it before, teams that end up winning the Stanley Cup have the best defense and play the smartest game. That's something we need to learn and learn fast." The Stars are last in the League in penalty-killing (73.3 percent) and have given up at least one power play goal in each of their past seven games. Goaltender Kari Lehtonen is expected to start. Dallas is 8-1-0 against Ottawa since the start of the 2009-10 season and 4-0-0 in their past four games at Canadian Tire Centre. The Stars are 7-14-4 on the road this season. Boucher told the Ottawa Sun that goaltender Craig Anderson, who has not played since Dec. 5, could return as soon as Saturday, when the Senators host the New York Islanders (1 p.m. ET; TSN5, RDS, MSG+, NHL.TV.) Anderson returned to the Senators on Jan. 30 after taking a leave of absence to be with his wife, Nicholle, who was having treatments for cancer.
Senators team scope
Goatender Mike Condon will start for the Ottawa Senators and coach Guy Boucher will dress 11 forwards and seven defensemen. Condon played in 27 straight games before Andrew Hammond started in a 6-0 loss to the St. Louis Blues on Tuesday, the second straight game the Senators were shut out. Boucher has been using his fourth line for as little as five minutes a game recently. Boucher is planning to give some of his first- and second-line players extra shifts on the fourth line with Tommy Wingels and Chris Kelly. Boucher said he liked the way defenseman Fredrik Claesson, a scratch for the past three games, has played and wanted to get him back in the lineup. "I've been wanting to [dress seven defensemen] for a long time," Boucher said. "I like to do that. Today with Claesson being healthy, all our 'Ds' being healthy, no one I want to take out, gives me the possibility to do that." The Senators are in second place in the Atlantic Division, tied with the Toronto Maple Leafs with 60 points, but the Senators have a game in hand.
Stars projected lineup
Jamie Benn -- Cody Eakin -- Patrick Eaves
Jiri Hudler -- Tyler Seguin -- Brett Ritchie
Devin Shore -- Radek Faksa -- Patrick Sharp
Antoine Roussel -- Adam Cracknell -- Lauri Korpikoski
Patrik Nemeth -- Stephen Johns
Kari Lehtonen
Scratched: Julius Honka, Curtis McKenzie
Injured: Jamie Oleksiak (hand), Mattias Janmark (knee), Johnny Oduya (lower body), Ales Hemsky (hip), Jason Spezza (upper body)
Senators projected lineup
Zack Smith -- Derick Brassard -- Mark Stone
Ryan Dzingel -- Kyle Turris -- Bobby Ryan
Mike Hoffman -- Jean-Gabriel Pageau -- Tom Pyatt
Tommy Wingels -- Chris Kelly
Marc Methot -- Erik Karlsson
Dion Phaneuf -- Cody Ceci
Mark Borowiecki -- Chris Wideman
Fredrik Claesson
Mike Condon
Andrew Hammond
Scratched: Chris Neil, Curtis Lazar, Craig Anderson
Injured: Clarke MacArthur (concussion)
Status report
Neil will be a scratch for the fourth time in the past six games; Lazar for the third time in five games.
Who's hot
Jamie Benn has 11 points (six goals, five assists) in his past nine games. … Karlsson has five points (one goal, four assists) in his past four games. … Stone has four points (two goals, two assists) in his past four games.
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