• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers
• Game Tracker

Jets, Stars look to rebound in Winnipeg

Feb 24, 2015 - 4:07 PM (SportsNetwork.com) - A pair of teams looking to put recent losses behind them square off on Tuesday night as the Winnipeg Jets play host to the Dallas Stars.

The Jets hold the first of two wild card spots in the Western Conference, but have lost two in a row. That includes a 4-3 overtime loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday, with Winnipeg earning a point for the seventh time in nine games (4-2-3).

Mark Scheifele had a goal and an assist in Saturday's road loss, which saw the Maple Leafs tie the game less than four minutes into the third period and then win it with 1:13 on the clock in overtime.

Michael Frolik and Jacob Trouba also scored for the Jets, while Drew Stafford had two assists and Michael Hutchinson made 29 saves.

"We've got to get past this game," Scheifele said. "Obviously we came out strong and we had our good parts of the game, but we let up a lot and they were able to get their cycle game going, which we didn't want. We've got to move on from it and be better."

The Jets, who sit four points behind the third-place Chicago Blackhawks in the Central Division, begin a four-game homestand tonight having won six of their last eight as the host. However, they won't have defenseman Ben Chiarot for the next six weeks due to a broken left hand suffered versus the Leafs.

Dustin Byfuglien figures to move back to the blue line due to the loss of Chiarot as the Jets recalled center Eric O'Dell from the minors.

While Winnipeg was able to record a point last time out, Dallas suffered a potentially back-breaking 6-2 loss to the Minnesota Wild on Sunday. It was a tough loss to take as the Stars led 1-0 going into the third period before allowing the Wild to score six times in the final frame.

Jason Spezza had both Dallas goals and Jhonas Enroth faced 35 shots in giving up all six goals.

"They're energy was a lot better than ours in the third," Stars head coach Lindy Ruff said.

The Stars were already coming off a 7-6 overtime loss to the Detroit Red Wings the previous night and have lost three in a row overall to fall six points behind the Wild for the second wild card spot in the West.

Tonight marks the fourth and final regular-season meeting between these clubs. The Stars lost a pair of home meetings to the Jets earlier this season, but rebounded with a 5-2 victory in Winnipeg on Jan. 31.

Kari Lehtonen is likely to get the start for the Stars tonight, while the Jets could go with Ondrej Pavelec.

Lehtonen is 5-1-1 with a 1.96 goals against average and .945 save percentage in seven previous meetings with Winnipeg, while Pavelec is 4-3-0 against the Stars with a 3.65 GAA and .900 save percentage.