FRISCO — After the Stars fell 4-1 to Winnipeg in an uninspired road loss two weeks ago, their chances of overtaking the top spot in the Central Division seemed slim.
Not only were their chances of topping the Western Conference standings slipping away, but the second seed that they had seemingly secured comfortably was in jeopardy.
The Stars were playing far from their best hockey and didn’t look like they had much to play for.
But in the span of a couple of weeks after a six-game win streak, the Stars are now in a better position than they’ve been in months to jump Winnipeg in the Central Division race and even contend for the President’s Trophy.
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“Two weeks ago, I don’t think anyone thought we’d be here,” Stars coach Pete DeBoer said at practice Wednesday. “It was more dealing with Colorado, who was right on our heels, so credit to our group. We’ve won a lot of games lately in order to fill the gap.”
Dallas was the third team to clinch a playoff spot, doing so two games ago in Seattle, and remaining right with Washington and Winnipeg as the only three teams to cross the 100-point mark so far this season.
But after the Jets lost to the Kings Tuesday night, their lead in the division is dwindling. The Stars now trail by just four points with a game in hand.
Of course, the Stars need Winnipeg to lose a few of its last seven games, and they’re prepared that they need to be near flawless in their own.
“We’re going to have to take care of business and maybe win out the rest of the way to do it,” DeBoer said.
But the next two weeks play in the Stars favor, and the opportunity to claim the conference’s regular season title again is an attainable goal.
The Stars have the chance at a four-point swing when they take on Winnipeg head-to-head next Thursday at American Airlines Center. Dallas lost to Winnipeg twice (two weeks ago and back in November) and won once in December.
The Stars are one of the best home teams in the league this year with a 27-7-2 record, a step up from their 22-14-2 record on the road. Including the Winnipeg game, five of Dallas’ last eight games are at home. That head-to-head contest may very well decide the division.
Besides Winnipeg, the Stars should be able to coast through the end of their regular season schedule. They play Nashville and Pittsburgh, two teams well out of the playoffs. They then face Minnesota and Vancouver, which have fallen off in recent weeks. Only two of Dallas’ remaining eight opponents are currently in a playoff spot.
The Jets, on the other hand, play four playoff teams in their last seven games, including Pacific Division leader Vegas, a streaking St. Louis team and reigning Stanley Cup finalist Edmonton.
Whether the Stars finish first or second in the conference, their road to the Stanley Cup will be a challenge. They learned that last year after finishing first only to earn a seven-game series with Vegas in the first round.
But this year, the gap is greater between the true contenders and the others. Colorado is considered among the contenders. Minnesota, which currently occupies the second Wild Card spot and is slated to face the Central Division winner, is not.
The Stars have done the best they can to control their destiny up until this point. All they can do is keep winning — and root for a few of their Western Conference rivals to take care of business when Winnipeg comes to town.
“We’ve had our eye on it for a long time. You can’t obsess over it, but that has to be what you’re aiming toward,” Stars forward Matt Duchene said. “[The Jets] have a tough schedule. They play some really good teams, and they’re gonna have to play really good hockey. We want them to have to play lights out to fend us off, and if they do, we tip our hat.
“That’s a situation that we want to be in where we did everything we could, and they just were able to hold a really good lead from the start of the year.”
