Going for the sweep: Braden Holtby gets the start in final game of trip

Stars (21-16-2, 44 points) vs. Devils (15-20-5, 35 points)

The Stars' current road trip and place in the standings has helped emphasize one thing - they need to do whatever they can to pick up points.
Dallas has struggled on the road all season (7-12-1) and has now won three games in a row. That streak has helped put them in shouting distance of a playoff spot and created a definite feeling of positivity.
"We had to start winning on the road," Stars coach Rick Bowness said. "There's no way we're making the playoffs without winning on the road, so this is coming at a perfect time. It's going to be tight right through the end of the season, so it's important that we win on the road."

The pressure has forced some tough decisions from the coaching staff, but it also has pushed the team to improve in certain areas. On Monday, the coaching staff moved Denis Gurianov off a line with Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin and replaced him with Riley Damiani. Bowness said the decision was basically because the line was playing poorly and Gurianov was having a rough night.
"He wasn't very good, simple as that," Bowness said. "Didn't deserve to be out there. We put Riley on that line, and that line started to go."
Damiani was rookie of the year in the AHL last season and has shown the ability to not only score goals but make creative plays. The 21-year-old forward helped the Seguin line look better in the third period.
"He was making things happen a lot more," Bowness said. "Riley is a smart, heady hockey player and he's always around the puck and he makes things happen. That line was not very good at all for us, very disappointing. They've got to play a lot better, but when Riley went out with them, all of a sudden they got going. They spent more time in the offensive zone, which we need them to do. Riley gave them a spark."
The coaching staff also leaned heavily on the pairing of Miro Heiskanen and Ryan Suter, playing the duo 26 minutes. Bowness said that the chemistry between the two was strong, and their play helped affect the forwards in a positive way.
"They were moving the puck really well and joining the rush really well, Miro was up a lot," Bowness said. "But they were making a lot of good things happen for our forwards. Every team wants to play fast today and that means your D getting the puck and the forwards coming back, so you can move the puck. We thought both of those guys did a great job. They both had very strong games for us."
Now, on the second night of a back-to-back, the coaching staff will have to be prepared to make similar adjustments if the need is there. The Devils play a fast-paced game, Bowness said, and Dallas will have to be careful.
They're a good team on the rush," Bowness said. "They run a lot of skill and a lot of speed. They would like nothing more than to get in a track meet with us out there. It's back-to-back games for us, so that's not a preferred style of play for us tonight. We want to play good team defense and get good offense from our team D. They're fast, they're rested, and they like to score on the rush. It makes it tough to play them, so we need to be sharp without the puck."

What to watch

Braden Holtby will get the start in net.
The veteran is 8-8-1 on the year and has had his ups and downs. He beat both Buffalo and Detroit while allowing four goals in each game, but Bowness said he likes what he's seen from Holtby.
"He feels good," Bowness said when asked how Holtby was handling the goals against barrage. "We talked to him, and I think mentally, he's in the right frame of mind. He's a pro and he comes to the rink every day. Sometimes, things don't go your way every night, so it's how you handle it.
"He's a pro, a strong character guy, good teammate, and he's handled it very well. I'd never question his mental side. He knows when the goals go in that he should've had and he's the first to admit it, but he doesn't let it linger, he doesn't dwell on it. He moves on to the next shot or the next game and that's the approach we need from him tonight."
In his career against the Devils, Holtby is 17-4-3 with a 2.09 GAA and .924 save percentage.

Lineup update

The Stars are dealing with illness and injury and that'll force some game-time decisions tonight.
Radek Faksa is out with an illness and Michael Raffl has a lower-body injury.
Here is a possible lineup:
Robertson-Hintz-Pavelski
Benn-Seguin-Damiani
Kiviranta-Peterson-Radulov
Kero-Glendening-Gurianov
Suter-Heiskanen
Lindell-Klingberg
Hanley-Hakanpaa
Holtby
Oettinger

Numbers

1-5-2

The Devils are 1-5-2 against the Central Division this season.

165

Devils coach Lindy Ruff ranks tied for fourth in Stars history in coaching wins at 165.

20

Stars forward Joe Pavelski has 20 points (11 goals, nine assists) and is plus-13 in 21 career games against New Jersey.

He said it

"I just try to be in the right place. I play with good players, so I know they're going to find me." -- Stars forward Jacob Peterson on the fact he has seven goals on the season, including two in the past four games.
This story was not subject to the approval of the National Hockey League or Dallas Stars Hockey Club.
Kyle Shohara is the Digital Manager for DallasStars.com and writes about the Stars/NHL. Follow him on Twitter @kyleshohara.