NHL: Phoenix Coyotes play host to the Dallas Stars
The final game of Tuesday will be hosted by the Phoenix Coyotes as they play host to the Dallas Stars. This will be the sixth and final meeting between the two teams during the course of the season. Out of the five games that have taken place between
the two teams during the course of the season, the Stars have won two while the Coyotes have emerge winners on three occasions.
The last and most recent encounter between the two teams was a nail-biter as the two teams were head-to-head right till the very end. The Coyotes had three wins backing then but the Stars managed to win the game 3-2 in the end with Jamie Benn scoring
the winning goal for the Stars.
The Coyotes have a slender chance of winning the Division title ahead of the leading Sharks but they will be looking to concentrate on the play-offs more as they are in the midst of a close battle for the play-offs occupying the fourth spot. The Stars
on the other hand were going through some good times and were in the play-off cut but a drop in their form has pushed them to the 10th
spot in the Western Conference. The Stars will be looking to score two important points as they are just four points behind the eighth placed Chicago Blackhawks.
The Stars have managed to register one regulation time win in the last six games and this will be the only reason if they don’t find a place in the play-offs. Before this slump in form, they were one of the hottest teams in the league who had won six
games in regulation time out of the eight games they played.
In their last game against the Nashville Predators, the Stars got into the lead but gave away goals only to lose the game 4-2 in the end this past Saturday.
"I thought we made some great plays at the end," Stars coach Marc Crawford said. "Nashville made a couple of good blocks. It was a one-goal game (David Legwand scored an empty-netter), and that is exactly what we thought it was going to be. We just
ended up on the wrong side of it."
The Stars have played 74 games out of which they have won 38 games in regulation time, 10 games in overtime to score a total of 86 points. The Coyotes on the other hand have played 77 games and won 41 games in regulation time, 11 games in overtime
to score a total of 93 points.
The Coyotes have come up with a decent performance in the last 11 games that have seen them losing only two games in regulation time. The Coyotes lost their last game against the Sharks with an embarrassing 4-1 scoring after the standards they have
set for themselves.
"We weren't good enough in any area," Coyotes captain Shane Doan said of Saturday's game. "They kind of controlled play and we have to be better than what we showed, and we know that."
The game is pretty much even with both teams looking to score points but the Stars would give it their all as they need a win to stay in the running for the play-offs.
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