Eyeing sweep of Blue Jackets, Stars staying 'one step ahead' with lineup

Stars (5-1-1, 11 points) at Blue Jackets (4-4-3, 11 points)

Multi-tasking in hockey is a full-time job.
The Stars are coming off
a big 6-3 win at Columbus on Tuesday
in which they sat rookie Ty Dellandrea for a game, inserted rookie goalie Jake Oettinger for a game, and tried to keep veteran Joel L'Esperance fresh.
On Thursday, Dallas will insert rookie Jason Robertson, return to veteran Anton Khudobin in goal, and may or may not put Dellandrea back in -- all the while trying to get a sweep of the Blue Jackets and end a four-game road trip on a good note.
GAME DAY GUIDE: [How to watch, live stream Stars at Blue Jackets]
"We've got to keep as many guys playing as we can, because of the unknown," Stars coach Rick Bowness said of the decision to play Robertson. "We want to be prepared, we want to stay one step ahead of the injuries and COVID."
The Stars were hit hard by the pandemic, as several players were sidelined and the first four games of the season had to be postponed. Since then, Dallas has not had the same lineup for two games in a row and has had to work deep into its taxi squad. With the team off to a 5-1-1 start, things are going pretty well, and maybe that's why they can afford to play Robertson, who was in the lineup for the first two games, but has been a healthy scratch since.
The Stars' second-round pick from 2017 led the OHL in scoring in 2018-19 with 117 points (48 goals, 69 assists) in 62 games. He led the Texas Stars in his first AHL season with 47 points (25 goals, 22 assists) in 60 games last season. So he clearly is an offensive-minded player.

Bowness said the coaches want to put Robertson in a place to succeed and will have him on the power play tonight.
"It's like any young player, it's the pace of the game and it's your play away from the puck and without the puck that comes into play," Bowness said. "This league is very structured, and you have to learn to play with that structure."
Robertson has not had a shot attempt in his first two games, and he said he's studied the film closely.
"That was two weeks ago, and I kind of watched my clips probably five times, so I'm getting more familiar and more confident and trying to look to see what I can do better and what I can do differently," Robertson said. "I've talked to numerous people on what I should have done and what I can do, and how to open up more of my playing style. I've been watching those clips and trying to fine tune all of those skills in practices and I'll try to put that in the game tonight."
Robertson has to find a way to find confidence in his offensive game while still maintaining a strong structure. The Stars as a team focus on creating offense from defense, but that requires quick decision-making and being comfortable with the game plan.
"I think they just wanted more details, the small things in the game," Robertson said. "They knew I had a lot of skill and they told me that you had the right direction, but just work on these little details. That's pretty much what I've been doing in practice, and I'm really looking forward to doing that tonight."
As for Dellandrea, he might be back in. That's a game-time decision, Bowness said. That also means that someone like L'Esperance or Tanner Kero could come out. It's all part of being prepared this season.

Bowness: Be ready for Columbus' A-game

The new division-centric schedule the NHL is using to deal with the COVID pandemic creates some intriguing new situations for players, like playing most opponents two times in a row. The Stars took the win on Tuesday, which included a dominant first-period performance.
Because of that, the lads in Victory Green expect the Blue Jackets to come out on fire in the rematch Thursday night. Columbus had a strong third period, and Bowness believes that will carry over.
"They're going to come at us tonight like they came at us in the third period," Bowness said. "Those first 40 minutes are going to be a much harder fought 40 minutes than they were on Tuesday night. Some of those turnovers (by us), give them credit, they were right on top of us. The back pressure was there, the battle was there, so give them some credit. We've got to make better decisions with the puck when we're in those situations."

The Stars have had some ups and downs this season, and they are trying to make sure they stay on an even keel. That said, players know emotions will enter into the formula, especially on the second night of these little mini-series.
"I think the rivalries are going to start to pick up," forward Blake Comeau said of facing teams that were in the Eastern Conference last season. "Obviously, not seeing these teams a ton in previous seasons, it's a little bit different. But with the amount of games we're going to play against each other, you can see the emotions are going to start to ride high and you're going to start to form some rivalries and dislike for each other."
The Stars coaching staff has often used the FCC line with Comeau, Radek Faksa and Andrew Cogliano to start games and set a tone. That will be important in a game where Columbus is expected to be ready to go.
"Whoever is starting, whether it's our line or any other line, I think it's important to try to grab some momentum, have a good shift and spend some time in their zone," Comeau said. "Try to dictate and just set the pace for the game right from the start."

Lineup updates

With Robertson in, it gives fans another chance to imagine just what the line will look like.
Would they play the skilled forward on a line with Roope Hintz and Denis Gurianov? That might make sense, because Jason Dickinson could slide down and take the place of Tanner Kero at center on the fourth line.
Would they leave Dickinson on the second line and bring Ty Dellandrea in to center a fourth line with Robertson and Nick Caamano?
Will Dellandrea come back in or will they stick with Kero or Joel L'Esperance?
Lots to ponder there.
We'll wait until tonight to find out.
Winger Joel Kiviranta still is dealing with a lower-body injury and defenseman Andrej Sekera still is in COVID protocol, so they are out.
Khudobin is 3-1-1 on the season with a 2.17 GAA and .922 save percentage. In six career games against Columbus, Khudobin is 3-2-1 with a 2.16 GAA and .927 save percentage.

By the numbers

1

That's the Stars' winning streak against Columbus after Tuesday's 6-3 win. The Blue Jackets were on an eight-game winning streak that dated back to 2015 before that.

18

That's the number of goals for Columbus forward Patrik Laine in 18 career games against the Stars. He was shut out in his Columbus debut Tuesday night.

11-3

Radek Faksa went 11-3 in the faceoff circle Tuesday.

He said it

"I do think the biggest thing for all of us as a team here, and I think it's a major problem as a group, is we have been an identity team. We know what our identity is, and we need to get back to that, of being a team that is just hard to play against. I do not think we're hard enough to play against, and we're playing against a very hard team, a very good team." -- Columbus coach John Tortorella on Wednesday
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.