Stars News & Notes: Pacific Division Watch

Sunday, March 16, 2008

The battle in the Pacific Division will start to heat up a bit this week as the Stars take on the Ducks Wednesday and then the Ducks and the Sharks meet Friday in San Jose.

San Jose extended its lead to four points over the Stars and three points over the Ducks Sunday night when they picked up one point in a 2-1 shootout loss to Edmonton that snapped the Sharks' winning streak at eleven games.

Pacific Division Standings
Team GP W L OT PTS
San Jose 72 42 21 9 93
Anaheim 74 41 25 8 90
Dallas 74 42 27 5 89

Although the Stars have stumbled lately and fallen behind both the streaking Sharks and the Ducks in the standings, there is still a lot of hockey to be played in the division and there are some key head-to-head games.

The Stars two have games left with both San Jose and Anaheim as they battle for the division title.

"[The division title] is very important to us," Tippett said on KDFW's Sports Sunday. " There are two ways to make the playoffs, either the top eight or win your division. We still think we have a great chance to win the division. We have two games against Anaheim and two games against San Jose. If we can get our game in order we feel like we can compete very well in those games and give ourselves a chance.

If the Stars don't win the division there is the strong possibility that the first round playoff matchup will come against the other team that falls short in the Pacific Division race and that means there is still home ice in the first round up for grabs over these last few weeks of the season.

"Home ice is just a better percentage factor to win in the playoffs and anytime you can get something like that, it helps you out," said Tippett.

Here's a brief look at each of the big three in the Pacific Division.

Pacific Division Down the Stretch
Team GP W L OTL PTS W% PTS Pace
San Jose 72 42 21 9 93 .646 106
What's News
They finally lost. The Sharks' 11-game winning streak ended with a 2-1 shootout loss to Edmonton, the league's best shootout team, Sunday night. The point extended the Sharks' lead in the division to four points over the Ducks and three over the Stars. San Jose still has two games in hand on both teams.

"We have points in 12 straight games, and we're in great position," said Sharks coach Ron Wilson. "With a little bit of luck, we might be able to reel Detroit in. But you want to keep on plugging and win the games at hand."

Sunday's loss was the first for the Sharks since February 20, when they dropped a road game in New Jersey.

What's ahead
The Sharks play three games in four days this week (At L.A., vs. Minnesota and vs. Anaheim) that will wrap up a stretch during which they play five games in eight days.

Key injuries
*C Curtis Brown (hand) is skating, no timetable for return
*LW Ryane Clowe (knee) is skating, no timetable for return
Team GP W L OTL PTS W% PTS Pace
Anaheim 74 41 25 8 90 .608 100
What's News
The Ducks, who are 14-3-1 over their last 18 games, have lost defenseman Chris Pronger for eight games after the NHL suspended him for stomping on Vancouver's Ryan Kesler during a game last week.

"That’s what the league has decided. We have to live with the consequences and deal with that," said coach Randy Carlyle. "Now it’s an opportunity, that’s why you acquire players at the trade deadline and have depth in your lineup. We have the choice between [Marc-Andre] Bergeron and [Joe] DiPenta to go in. That’s just the way it is and we move forward."

Pronger will return for the Ducks' final regular season game against Phoenix. 

What's ahead
The Ducks, who have won nine straight at home, play their next three games on the road, taking on Dallas, San Jose and Phoenix in a span of four days this coming week.

Key injuries
*RW Corey Perry (tendon surgery) is out for rest of regular season and first round of playoffs.
*RW Ryan Carter (wrist surgery) is expected to miss the rest of the regular season.

Team GP W L OTL PTS W% PTS Pace
Dallas 74 42 27 5 89 .601 99
What's News
The Stars have dropped five of the their last six games and are taking two days off from practice before hitting the ice Tuesday to prepare for a key game against Anaheim on Wednesday.

"The results certainly haven't been there that we'd like, but we've got a plan in place where we are going to try to prepare our group as best we can for the stretch run and the playoffs," Stars coach Dave Tippett said on KDFW's Sports Sunday. "Our motto right now is to try to get better every day. We are trying to get people integrated into different roles on our team. Hopefully as we move forward things will come together and we'll be peaking at the right time."

What's ahead
The Stars are in a stretch that sees them playing just twice over 11 days. They host Anaheim Wednesday and then Los Angeles on Saturday. They then have four days off before heading out on a West Coast road trip starting March 27 in San Jose.

Key injuries
*D Sergei Zubov (foot/groin) could start skating later this week.
*D Philippe Boucher (shoulder) is out until late March/early April

Remaining Schedule
  Dallas Anaheim San Jose
Games Remaining 8 8 10
Home/Away 4 home, 4 away 4 home, 4 away 5 home, 5 away
March 17      
March 18     At Los Angeles
March 19 Anaheim At Dallas Minnesota
March 20      
March 21   At San Jose Anaheim
March 22 Los Angeles At Phoenix  
March 23      
March 24      
March 25     At Phoenix
March 26   Los Angeles  
March 27 At San Jose   Dallas
March 28   San Jose At Anaheim
March 29 At Los Angeles    
March 30 At Anaheim Dallas Phoenix
March 31      
April 1     Los Angeles
April 2      
April 3 At Phoenix   At Los Angeles
April 4 Phoenix    
April 5   At Los Angeles  
April 6 San Jose Phoenix At Dallas

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