If Stars want to avoid Game 7, a strong start will be crucial

Game 6: Stars vs. Avalanche (Dallas leads 3-2)

To be fair, the Stars have a history of slow starts, so the fact they were "atrocious" to begin closeout games against the Flames and Avalanche isn't that unusual.
But if Dallas wants to move on to the Western Conference finals for the first time since 2008 and avoid the drama of a Game 7, then getting off to a decent start Wednesday in Game 6 is a pretty big priority.
"We obviously got off to a bad start last game, and that's something we've addressed," said forward Blake Comeau. "We've got to do a better job of taking away their time and space. I felt like they broke the puck out fairly easy and came at us with a lot of speed through the neutral zone and we didn't play with very good details, so that's something we've got to clean up. They're going to be a hungry team again tonight. Obviously, they're facing elimination and we know how hard those games are."
Dallas allowed the first three goals against Calgary in Game 6 in the first round, before rallying for a 7-3 win. They allowed the first five goals against the Avalanche Monday in Game 5. That's a real concern. During the postseason, Dallas has been outscored 18-12 in first periods and outshot 169-126.

They have been able to rally with strong second periods, but interim coach Rick Bowness said they want to be able to start well, too. He said the fact Dallas jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first 11 minutes of Game 4 shows that they too are capable of good starts.
"We've got a good crew in there," Bowness said of his players. "No one was more disappointed than our players after last game. They know they it slip by. They have great respect for Colorado, as we all should. We know we're going to have to come out of the gates like we did in Game 4. We did it to them in Game 4, they did it to us in Game 5, so let's see who takes over this game early tonight."
Colorado has been one of the more dominant teams in the playoffs, and that includes during first periods. They have outscored opponents 16-10 in the first 20 minutes and outshot them 180-93.
"We know what to expect," Bowness said. "We weren't on our game defensively. We have to be better."

Goalie decisions still up in the air

Bowness surprised the hockey world when he went with Ben Bishop as the starter in Game 5. Bishop had missed eight straight games, but the coach said his No. 1 goalie was ready on the second night of a back-to-back, and that helped influence the decision.
Bowness would not announce who would start in Game 6, but he said on Tuesday that because the team had a day off, that either goalie could start. He said the fact the team is playing in the Edmonton bubble and is not traveling makes for interesting discussions. On the other side, Colorado has played three goalies and also has some decisions to make in net.

"It is weird. It's bubble hockey," Bowness said. "We'll have discussions as a staff. We'll see who's best fit for that game tomorrow night. It'll come down to that. Our preference is never to play a goalie back to back unless you absolutely have to. So we had the day off today and we'll see what it looks like tomorrow."
Khudobin is 7-4-0 in the playoffs with a 2.86 GAA and .911 save percentage. He also came on in Game 5 and looked good in relief. Bishop looked rusty from sitting, but he went 3-0-0 against the Avalanche during the regular season with a 1.61 GAA and .959 save percentage.

Gurianov following up on regular season success

After leading the Stars in goal scoring with 20 goals during the regular season, rookie Denis Gurianov is following that trend and is tied for the team lead in playoff goals with eight. He is tied for second in the NHL with that total.
So how has he become a consistent goal-scorer?

"I think first of all, my linemates who I play with create some moments for me, and give me the puck, and I just shoot it," Gurianov said of Joe Pavelski and Mattias Janmark. "So I credit my teammates."
Bowness said that Gurianov has improved his defensive play and that has led to trust from the coaching staff. Gurianov averaged 12:59 during the regular season, but in Game 5 logged 18:11.
"He's come a long way," Bowness said. "He's a much more reliable defensive player now than earlier in the year, so we can depend on him a lot more. I think that gives him a lot of confidence

By the numbers

6

That's the point-scoring streak for Miro Heiskanen, tied for the longest streak for a defenseman in franchise history. Heiskanen can set the franchise record with a point tonight. He already holds the record for most points by a defenseman in a playoff season.

54

One of the odd numbers that came out of Game 5 was the fact the Stars won 54 percent of the faceoffs. Pavelski went 12-4 in the circle. Bowness said winning faceoffs is key to beating Colorado.

9:31

That was the time on ice for Alexander Radulov in Game 5. Part of that was the fact Dallas had to kill 9:24 in Colorado power plays, but part of it was the fact Radulov was minus-3.

He said it

"I was kind of expecting the performance we got from him, to be honest, and hoping he can repeat it a few more times."
-- Colorado coach Jared Bednar on goalie Michael Hutchinson, who made his playoff debut in Game 5

Stars projected lineup

Jamie Benn - Tyler Seguin - Alexander Radulov
Mattias Janmark - Joe Pavelski - Denis Gurianov
Andrew Cogliano - Radek Faksa - Blake Comeau
Jason Dickinson - Roope Hintz - Corey Perry
Esa Lindell - John Klingberg
Jamie Oleksiak - Miro Heiskanen
Andrej Sekera - Taylor Fedun
Anton Khudobin
Ben Bishop
Unfit to Play: Stephen Johns
Scratched: Justin Dowling, Jason Robertson, Ty Dellandrea, Thomas Harley, Joel Kiviranta, Nick Caamano, Joel Hanley, Gavin Bayreuther, Jake Oettinger, Landon Bow
This story was not subject to the approval of the National Hockey League or Dallas Stars Hockey Club.
Mike Heikais a Senior Staff Writer for DallasStars.com and has covered the Stars since 1994. Follow him on Twitter @MikeHeika, and listen to his podcast.