Toronto Maple Leafs vs. Dallas Stars – Game #51 Preview, Projected Lines & TV Info

Puck Drop: 8:30 p.m. EST  |  Arena: American Airline Centre |  TV: TSN4 |  Radio: TSN 1050

Game Day Quotes

Dallas Stars head coach Ken Hitchcock on whether it will be a “chess match” against long-time friend and colleague Mike Babcock:

I don’t look at it that way. We’ve known each other so well. We’ve known each other for 30 years. We have a lot of the same terminology and philosophies. I more look at the way their team plays. I like the way their team plays. I like the dynamic they have in their group. They use their speed to close down on people significantly, which is what you have to do in today’s NHL. They don’t just use their speed with the puck; they use it without the puck. That’s hard to play against.

That’s the challenge for us. We’re built a little different. It’ll be interesting to see at the end of the night which team controls which.

Curtis McElhinney on getting back in between the pipes for the first time since before Christmas:

Just a lot of excitement on my end. It’s one of those things. It’s been tough sitting around. The little injury blip created some time off. It’ll be a fun one [tonight].

It’s just a matter of how quickly you can reacclimatize to the game and get a feel for it right away. That’ll be the key for me.

Everything feels great. It’s just been tough to get in there with the way the schedule has played out. Freddy has been doing a tremendous job. This will be a great opportunity for myself.

McElhinney on the challenge against Dallas in a back-to-back situation on the road:

It’ll be a tough game. Dallas has got a high offense. The first 10 minutes will be very important. It will be one of those things where we will just want to get in there and get settled in as quickly as we can.

I’m familiar with their team and what they bring to the table. Great hockey club and a big challenge.

Nazem Kadri on breaking his goal-scoring slump vs. Chicago:

It’s nice. Like I said, you’ve just got to stay patient. Getting frustrated is not going to do much for you. When you’re playing with great players, you’re going to get good looks each and every single game. I’m not the type of player be totally useless out there when I’m not scoring. I can contribute in other ways. I feel like my all-around game has been there. Hopefully this generates a spark.

Matchup Stats

Toronto Maple Leafs Projected Lineup

*We have added goal, assist, and point totals for each player below the lines. Total goals per line are indicated, too, as well as save percentage for goalies.

Forwards

Hyman – Matthews – Nylander
  (50-8-17-25) – (41-21-15-36) – (49-10-24-34) Total: 39
Marleau – Kadri – Marner
(50-16-9-25) – (48-15-11-26) – (50-7-26-33)  Total: 38
Van Riemsdyk – Bozak – Brown
  (49-19-11-30) – (48-8-17-25) – (50-12-6-18) Total: 39
Komarov – Moore – Kapanen
 (49-4-10-14) – (32-4-5-9) – (7-2-0-2)  Total: 10

Defencemen

Gardiner – Hainsey
 (50-3-22-25) – (50-3-15-18) Total: 6
Dermott – Carrick
 (7-0-1-1) – (30-3-3-6) Total: 3
Borgman – Polak
(46-3-8-11) – (31-2-4-6) Total: 5

Goaltenders

McElhinney (.916 sv%)
Andersen (.920 sv%)

Scratched: Martin, Leivo
Injured: Soshnikov, Zaitsev, Rielly

Dallas Stars Projected Lineup

Forwards

Benn – Seguin – Radulov
  (49-20-27-47) – (49-22-20-42) – (49-20-27-47) Total: 62
Roussel – Faksa – Pitlick
(43-5-9-14) – (48-12-11-23) – (47-9-8-17) Total: 26
Janmark – Spezza– Elie
  (48-13-14-27) – (48-7-14-21) – (41-5-5-10) Total: 25
Ritchie – Dickinson – Shore
 (40-4-4-8) – (8-0-0-0) – (49-6-15-21) Total: 10

Defencemen

Lindell – Klingberg
 (49-5-16-21) – (49-6-42-48) Total: 11
Hamhuis – Pateryn
 (47-1-14-15) – (40-1-4-5) Total: 2
Heatherington – Johns
 (3-0-0-0) – (46-5-5-10) Total: 5

Goaltenders

Bishop (.918 sv%)
Lehtonen (.914 sv%)

Injured: Methot, Hanzal