WILD GAMEDAY
at Dallas Stars, American Airlines Arena, Wednesday, 6:30 p.m.
TV; radio: TNT; 100.3 FM
Stats and analytics: Tap here.
Pregame reading: Jesper Wallstedt is ready for his moment in the spotlight.
Sarah McLellan's preview:
Lineup update: Jesper Wallstedt will make his NHL debut tonight as the Wild's goaltender. He was with the team in Sweden earlier this season, but did not play. Two Wild players — Marcus Johansson and Marcus Foligno — will be game-time decisions because of illness.
Opening bell: This is the third and final meeting of the regular season between these Central Division rivals, and Dallas is going for a sweep after routing the Wild in the first two games. The Stars have been dominating this matchup: Dallas (23-11-5) is on a nine-game point streak vs. the Wild, going 6-0-3. Over the past seven contests at American Airlines Arena, including the playoffs last season, the Wild (17-18-4) have won only three times.
Watch him: Stars RW Tyler Seguin continues to thrive against the Wild. Seguin set up C Roope Hintz's shorthanded goal in the first period on Monday and then scored early in the third. In 43 career games vs. the Wild, Seguin is up to 19 goals and 30 assists.
Injuries: Wild D Jonas Brodin (upper body), G Filip Gustavsson (lower body), LW Kirill Kaprizov (upper body), RW Vinni Lettieri (lower body) and D Jared Spurgeon (lower body). Stars D Miro Heiskanen (lower body) and G Jake Oettinger (lower body).
Forecast: Whoever wins the special-teams battle has won the game, and lately that's been the Stars. After scoring five power-play goals and twice shorthanded in the 8-3 romp on Nov. 12, Dallas used another two shorthanded tallies and a power-play marker to cruise to a 4-0 shutout on Monday. The Wild did a better job of cutting down on penalties, but the progress was a moot point since their power play (0-for-6) was so ineffective. Staying out of the box is still a smart strategy, but the Wild need goals — either via the power play or at even strength. If the offense doesn't deliver, the team could very well be in for another difficult night.
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