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Jan 12, 2010 - 5:18 AM By MATT BEARDMORE STATS Writer

Dallas (19-15-11) at Philadelphia (22-19-3), 7:00 p.m. EDT

Michael Leighton was the odd-man out earlier this season. Now, the 28-year-old goaltender is making it hard for Philadelphia Flyers coach Peter Laviolette to remove him from the lineup.

With Leighton scheduled to make his 10th straight start Tuesday night at the Wachovia Center, the Flyers will look to win their fourth in a row and continue their scoring surge against a Dallas Stars team that's struggling to find the back of the net.

With little playing time available behind Cam Ward and Manny Legace in Carolina, Leighton was claimed off waivers by the Flyers (22-19-3) on Dec. 15 to help offset the loss of starter Ray Emery, who underwent abdominal surgery six days earlier.

Brian Boucher was expected to get a majority of time in net as Emery recovered, but hasn't started since suffering a finger laceration in a 4-1 loss to Florida on Dec. 21.

Emery and Boucher have since returned, but Leighton gets the nod again after going 7-0-1 with a 2.06 goals-against average in his last nine starts.

"I've said it for a week now - he's earned the right to go back in there and play again," Laviolette told the Flyers' official Web site Monday. "He's been solid for us."

Even Emery, who made a conditioning assignment Saturday for AHL Adirondack, has no problem with Leighton starting considering the Flyers' recent success.

"Obviously, every goalie wants to play as many games as they can, but if a team is winning, you can't argue with that," Emery said.

Leighton is not the sole reason for Philadelphia's 7-1-1 run. The Flyers have outscored their opponents 17-7 over the last three games, with rookie James van Riemsdyk scoring three and Danny Briere, Mike Richards, Jeff Carter and Blair Betts all with a pair of goals during this stretch.

The Flyers will look to score four or more goals in five consecutive games for the first time since Feb. 14-24.

Dallas (19-15-11), meanwhile, has been outscored 17-7 during a 1-4-0 slide. The Stars were outshot 41-26 in Sunday's 2-0 loss at Columbus, but Loui Eriksson, Mike Modano and Steve Ott were each stopped on quality scoring chances.

"We did get some glorious chances and didn't put them away," said Stars coach Marc Crawford, whose team is 0-5-2 on the road since a 3-2 shootout win over San Jose on Dec. 11. "Any time you have two breakaways, point-blank breakaways, and you've got good guys getting them, you hope you get something out of it."

Marty Turco, who is expected to start Tuesday, could use more offensive support the way he's played on the road lately. Turco made 39 saves Sunday, but he is 1-6-1 with a 3.38 GAA in his last eight starts away from home.

Turco is 1-1-0 with two ties in four career starts in Philadelphia.

Stars center Brad Richards leads the club with 39 assists and 52 points. He has six goals and 17 assists in his last 16 games against the Flyers.

Modano, who is one goal shy of becoming the 25th player in NHL history to reach 550, scored twice in the Stars' last matchup with the Flyers - a 4-3 loss in Philadelphia on Nov. 24, 2008.