Radulov scratched by Stars for being late, won't play vs. Rangers

Alexander Radulov will be a healthy scratch tonight when the Dallas Stars open a three-game homestand against the New York Rangers at American Airlines Center (7:30 p.m. CT; FS-SW; KTCK).
Stars coach Jim Montgomery said Radulov will sit tonight because he was late to this morning's skate at the AAC.
"Radulov is going to be out. He was late this morning. That's all I am going to talk about it," Montgomery said.
Radulov declined to speak with reporters after coming off the ice.

With Radulov not playing and Andrew Cogliano (upper body) still not ready to return, the Stars will dress 11 forwards and seven defensemen. Radulov had been slotted to play on a line with Tyler Seguin and Roope Hintz, but Montgomery said he will now move pieces around during the game.
"Usually when I go 11 forwards, I rotate all," Montgomery said. "You are going to see (Jason Spezza) play center and right wing, you'll see Jamie Benn play center and left wing and the same thing with Seggy.

"Whoever is playing the best is going to get out there the most."
Jamie Oleksiak will dress as the seventh defenseman after being a healthy scratch the last two. The top six on defense in this morning's skate lined up this way: Miro Heiskanen-John Klingberg; Esa Lindell-Roman Polak; Taylor Fedun-Ben Lovejoy.
The power-play units will have a different look as well with Radulov not playing.
The top unit this morning had Benn, Seguin, Spezza, Hintz, and Klingberg. The second unit had Heiskanen, Lindell, Joel L'Esperance, Mattias Janmark, while Brett Ritchie and Radek Faksa rotating as the net-front guy.
Tonight's game kicks off a stretch that will see the Stars play three straight and eight of their next 10 games at home, where they are 19-10-2 this season. It's a key part of the schedule for the Stars (33-27-5, 71 points) as they try to hold onto a playoff spot in a very tight race in the Western Conference, where they are only three points away from third place in the Central Division and only two points ahead of the ninth-place spot in the conference.
"It's going to be a huge homestand for us," Klingberg said. "All games are so important now, it doesn't matter if it is at home or on the road. Obviously, when you are at home you can control the changes and a little bit of the momentum of the game, so we have to take advantage of this."

Zuccarello recovering well from broken arm

With the Rangers in town, Stars forward Mats Zuccarello was a center of attention this morning. The Stars acquired Zuccarello from the Rangers just before the NHL trade deadline, and Zuccarello talked to media about the range of emotions he felt as he was traded and then broke his arm in his first game with the Stars.
"You leave a team you've been with for a long time, you get to a new team, and you are real excited," Zuccarello said, "you meet the guys and you get to play, and you are super high up. You break your arm, and you are kind of down again. The team has been gone for a little bit (on the road) but I've been texting with the guys and talking with the guys, so I feel welcomed and really happy to be here."
Zuccarello suffered the broken arm in the Feb. 24 game at Chicago and had surgery two days later, which was last Tuesday. His expected return was put at four weeks. Zuccarello said he expects to start skating soon, although it will be without a stick and pucks for now. He said the recovery is going well.
"I was at the doctor today, and they said it was perfect," Zuccarello said. "I could do more with my arm than they expected and stuff, so that was good."
As for if he was still on the four-week timeframe, Zuccarello deferred to the experts.
"I am just a hockey player, so I can't really tell you," Zuccarello said. "But it feels good right now. It's only been a week, and I am excited."

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Opposition watch: New York Rangers

The Rangers (27-27-11, 65 points) are coming off a 3-2 shootout loss to Washington Sunday at Madison Square Garden.
Officials awarded Washington's Alex Ovechkin the game-deciding goal in the shootout after ruling that Rangers goalie Alexandar Georgiev threw his stick in stopping Ovechkin's attempt. The loss was the fourth straight (0-1-3) for the Rangers, but they have taken the Capitals (twice) and Tampa Bay to extra playing time in three of those losses.
New York is 12 points out of a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.
Georgiev is the expected starter in goal again tonight for the Rangers.

Fast facts

Tonight's game

Who:New York Rangers at Dallas Stars
Where: American Airlines Center
When:7:30 p.m.
TV:Fox Sports Southwest
Radio: The Ticket 1310-AM/96.7-FM

Stars projected lineup

Roope Hintz - Tyler Seguin
Jamie Benn - Joel L'Esperance - Jason Spezza
Mattias Janmark - Radek Faksa - Blake Comeau
Valeri Nichushkin - Jason Dickinson - Brett Ritchie
Miro Heiskanen - John Klingberg
Esa Lindell - Roman Polak
Taylor Fedun - Ben Lovejoy
Jamie Oleksiak
Ben Bishop
Anton Khudobin
Scratched: Alexander Radulov, Julius Honka
Injured: Andrew Cogliano (upper body), Mats Zuccarello (broken arm), Tyler Pitlick (wrist surgery), Martin Hanzal (back), Marc Methot (knee surgery), Stephen Johns (post-traumatic headaches)

Rangers projected lineup

Chris Kreider - Mika Zibanejad - Jimmy Vesey
Vladislav Namestnikov - Ryan Strome - Jesper Fast
Brendan Lemieux - Lias Andersson - Pavel Buchnevich
Brendan Smith - Brett Howden - Filip Chytil
Marc Staal - Tony DeAngelo
Libor Hajek - Kevin Shattenkirk
Brady Skjei - Neal Pionk
Alexandar Georgiev
Henrik Lundqvist
Scratched:Fredrik Claesson, Connor Brickley, Boo Nieves
Injured:None
This story was not subject to the approval of the National Hockey League or Dallas Stars Hockey Club.
Mark Stepneski has covered the Stars for DallasStars.com since 2012. Follow him on Twitter @StarsInsideEdge.