Stars chase a hot streak against the red-hot Utah Mammoth. Discover how Matt Duchene's resurgence ignites Dallas's contention hopes.
The Dallas Stars are finally looking like the major contender in the West that they are with four wins in their last five games and will look to stay red hot when taking on another red hot club in the Utah Mammoth, who have won nine of their last 12 games. It'll be the second clash between these two clubs with the Stars edging out a 4-3 win in late November.
Dallas has won four of the six all-time meetings between these teams, including victories in two of their three trips to the Mile High City. Utah enters the matchup riding a red-hot stretch, scoring 44 goals over their last 12 games while tightening up defensively with just 29 goals allowed during that span.
The Stars have shown similar improvement, though over a shorter window, tallying 18 goals for and allowing only 12 against during a five-game surge that has been sparked by a key individual stepping up at the right time.
That player is forward Matt Duchene, who could pose a major problem for Utah. After enduring a rough offensive stretch with just three points over nine games, Duchene has caught fire, scoring four goals over his last three contests and looking much more like his old self.
His resurgence has provided a significant lift for a Dallas team that had been searching for offense but now appears to have rediscovered its rhythm. On the other side, Utah counters with one of the league’s hottest duos in Nick Schmaltz and Clayton Keller. The pair has combined for eight goals during the team’s recent run, with Keller thriving as an elite playmaker and piling up 11 assists over the 12-game streak.
Dallas Stars’ Expected Line Combinations vs. Utah (Saturday)
Hryckowian - Johnston - Rantanen
Robertson - Hintz - Bourque
Steel - Duchene - Benn
Back - Faksa - Erne
Lindell - Heiskanen
Harley - Lundkvist
Capobianco - Petrovic
DeSmith
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