The Dallas Stars and Colorado Avalanche close out a home-and-home back-to-back Wednesday night at Ball Arena in Denver, with puck drop set for 8:30 p.m. ET. The Stars Avalanche Frozen Frenzy game is part of the NHL‘s Frozen Frenzy, now in its fourth consecutive year, a night when all 32 teams play simultaneously. Dallas enters at 2-2-1 while Colorado sits at 3-2-0, and both clubs are considered Stanley Cup contenders and top favorites in the Central Division.
Stars Vs Avalanche Game Information
- Date: Wednesday, Oct. 14
- Time: 8:30 p.m. ET
- Venue: Ball Arena, Denver, Colorado
- TV: TNT, truTV
- Series note: Second game of a home-and-home back-to-back between the two clubs
By The Numbers
- Goals (season total): Colorado 26, Dallas 11
- Points (season total): Colorado 71, Dallas 30
- Shots on goal (season total): Colorado 162, Dallas 124
- Shooting percentage: Colorado 16.0%, Dallas 8.9%
- Save percentage: Dallas .953, Colorado .874
- Goals against average: Dallas 1.40, Colorado 3.40
- Power-play goals: Colorado 4, Dallas 1
- Faceoff percentage: Dallas 54.6%, Colorado 51.4%
- Penalty minutes: Dallas 41, Colorado 40
Those numbers paint two very different styles through five games. Colorado has outscored opponents by a wide margin behind heavy volume, while Dallas has leaned on elite goaltending and puck management to stay afloat despite far fewer goals scored.
Dallas Stars Outlook
Dallas is 2-2-1 and has alternated between shutouts and shootout losses over its last three games, including a 5-0 win over San Jose and a 4-0 win at Buffalo sandwiched around a 2-1 shootout loss at Pittsburgh on Oct. 10. The Stars have allowed just seven goals all season, giving them a league-best 1.40 goals-against average and a .953 team save percentage, numbers that reflect how much Dallas has relied on its goaltending to offset an offense that has managed only 11 goals through five games.
Casey DeSmith is projected to start in net for Dallas on Wednesday, according to CBS Sports. DeSmith, 35, made his season debut on Oct. 3 and stopped 24 shots in a 2-1 loss to Nashville. Jake Oettinger was expected to start Tuesday’s first leg of the back-to-back, per CBS Sports, setting up DeSmith for the second half of the set.
Forward Tyler Seguin scored his first goal of the season Saturday after a long recovery from injury, a sign Dallas may be starting to generate more offense after a slow start. Forward Matt Duchene will miss roughly three months after undergoing core muscle surgery, a significant absence down the middle for a team already searching for secondary scoring. Wyatt Johnston (illness) and Joel Kiviranta (lower body) are also out for Dallas, and Luke Krys and Cameron Hughes remain on injured reserve.
Colorado Avalanche Outlook
Colorado is 3-2-0 and has scored 26 goals in five games, the most productive stretch of any team’s opening slate in the sources provided. The Avalanche beat Los Angeles 8-4 and St. Louis 6-1 earlier this month before alternating a loss at Winnipeg, a win at Calgary and a 6-3 loss to Toronto on Oct. 10.
Nathan MacKinnon leads Colorado with 10 points, and Cale Makar has seven points on the season, though Makar is listed as out for personal reasons for this game. Twelve different Avalanche players have scored at least one goal this season, and eight have scored at least two, showing scoring has been spread through the lineup rather than concentrated in one line.
Colorado’s power play has been flagged as needing a reset, with the team sitting at just four power-play goals this season despite the high goal totals at even strength. Zachary L’Heureux (upper body) is also out for Wednesday’s game, while Logan O’Connor (lower body) and Georgii Merkulov remain on injured reserve.
Key Matchup
Dallas goaltending against Colorado’s volume shooting is the matchup that will shape this game. The Stars have allowed only seven goals all season and carry a .953 save percentage into Denver, while the Avalanche have piled up 162 shots and a 16.0% shooting rate through five games. Whoever starts for Dallas will face a Colorado attack getting contributions from twelve different goal scorers, meaning the Stars cannot simply focus on shutting down one line. On the other side, Colorado’s shaky power play, averaging well below its shooting percentage with the man advantage, will need to find a way to capitalize if Dallas’s penalty kill holds up the way its overall defensive numbers suggest it can.
What To Watch
Both teams sit in the thick of an early, tightly packed Central Division, where Dallas and Colorado are separated by just one point in the standings. The two clubs split their season series last year with two wins apiece, and Wednesday’s result will be the first data point in this season’s series. With Dallas already missing Duchene for months and Colorado playing without Makar and L’Heureux, both rosters will be tested for depth as they try to build on inconsistent starts.
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