It's homecoming for several Stars in big divisional matchup in Minnesota

Stars (6-6-2, 14 points) vs. Wild (10-5-0, 20 points)

SAINT PAUL, Minn. --Ryan Suter has had quite a journey over the past year.
He was bought out of his contract with the Minnesota Wild and was forced to search for a new home as a free agent. He signed with the Stars, and now he returns to Xcel Energy Center tonight to face his old teammates.
It's been a pretty hectic transition for the 36-year-old who moved with his family to Texas and brought them back to Minnesota for this game.
"There will be a lot of emotions, obviously," Suter said. "A lot of close friends, which are now enemies, but it'll be fun."
Suter went to dinner with his family and their friends on Wednesday and said that leaving Minnesota after nine years was difficult. The native of Wisconsin said being able to live in a hockey environment and have a rink in his backyard and take his kids to outdoor practices was fantastic, but he added that it's also nice to be swimming in November in Texas.
All of that is tumbling around for this evening, but Suter said once the game starts, things should be normal.
"I'm telling myself it's just another game, I'm telling everybody," Suter said. "Once it gets started, everything will be normal. This stuff here (with the media) is the difference. Last night, my family came up and we went to dinner with a bunch of friends hanging out with those guys and saying goodbye last night, that's tough, but once we get on the ice, it'll be good."

Suter is good friends with Joe Pavelski, who went through a similar experience a couple of years ago when he returned to San Jose. A lot of times, these can be bonding moments with your new teammates.
"I know going back to San Jose was special, to see all of the people, the fans were great. I certainly expect the same for Ryan, who has meant a lot to that organization," Pavelski said. "I think each time it gets a little easier. You've just got to go through it."
Suter said he's been steadied by the support of his Stars teammates.
"I know the guys are very motivated to come out and play well, not just for our team but for me, and I think we'll be ready to go," he said.

What to watch

Another player to keep an eye on tonight will be rookie forward Riley Tufte. He grew up in Minnesota and played at the University of Minnesota-Duluth, where he won two NCAA championships, including one at Xcel Energy Center. The 23-year-old, who was drafted in the first round in 2016, will have a ton of friends and family in the audience for his third NHL game.
"It's awesome," he said. "It's something you always dreamed about when you were a little kid. I went to a lot of Wild games when I was younger, so being able to play here tonight is a dream come true."

Tufte's had an interesting start. He was great in training camp, earned a call-up with his play in the AHL, and then played just 4:25 in his first game. He was bumped up to 7:50 last game and said he's learning all the time.
"I played four minutes that first game, but I learned a lot and we got the win, which was the most important thing. Just listening to the guys on the bench, how they react, how they do stuff, I learned a lot," Tufte said. "It's been pretty crazy playing your first two NHL games. The first one was awesome, but then the second one I felt a little bit more comfortable and felt I belonged out there a little bit more and just tried to play to my abilities. Hopefully, I can do that."

Lineup updates

The Stars will go with Anton Khudobin in net. He played well in a win over Philadelphia on Saturday, but then had to back up on Tuesday against Detroit because of an illness.
Stars head coach Rick Bowness said this is a big divisional game, and Khudobin earned the start with his last performance.

The Stars had an optional skate in the morning, but Bowness said the plan is to have the same lines as Tuesday.
Robertson-Hintz-Pavelski
Peterson-Seguin-Radulov
Raffl-Benn-Gurianov
Tufte-Faksa-Glendening
Suter-Klingberg
Lindell-Heiskanen
Sekera-Hakanpaa
Khudobin
Oettinger
Stars GM Jim Nill said Blake Comeau, who was waived and assigned to the Texas Stars, is dealing with a nagging injury and will rest for three weeks and then be reassessed.
Nill said when he's ready to play, Comeau will get back into action at the AHL level.

Numbers

7-1-0

The Wild are 7-1-0 in one-goal games. They're 4-0 in games that go past regulation.

18

Minnesota has allowed 18 first-period goals. That's the third most in the NHL this season.

39

Tyler Seguin has tallied 39 points (15 goals, 24 assists) in 33 games against the Wild - the most points he's scored against any NHL opponent.

He said it

"He's feeling more and more comfortable. The combination with John (Klingberg) is getting more chemistry, and that's what we needed. We told you right off the bat it's not going to take five or six games, it's going to take a while. But I see that chemistry developing and they're talking more on the bench." -- Bowness on how Suter is transitioning to his new team.
Catch the Stars on their upcoming three-game homestand as they take on the St. Louis Blues this Saturday at 7 p.m. Get your tickets now!
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.