Stars hope to make life 'miserable' for Lightning's Andrei Vasilevskiy

Stars (21-17-14, 56 points) vs. Lightning (35-14-3, 73 points)

Beating Andrei Vasilevskiy has been a difficult task for the Stars. Beating him in Tampa has been darn near impossible.
Vasilevskiy is 5-1-0 against the Stars this season with a 1.32 goals-against average and .948 save percentage. In two games at Amelie Arena, he hasn't allowed a goal. In his career, the 26-year-old is 10-1-3 against Dallas with a 1.90 GAA and .933 SV%.
So, it's no surprise he's played in every game against the Stars this season and is scheduled to start Wednesday.
Stars bench boss Rick Bowness was an assistant coach with Tampa Bay and helped Vasilevskiy break into the league. Now, the first-round pick from 2012 (19th overall) has won one Vezina Trophy (2019) and is the favorite to win it again this year.
"He's a great goaltender," Bowness said in his pregame media session on Wednesday. "I've told you before in my opinion he's the best in the league. He's a great competitor, a tremendous worker and a wonderful, wonderful teammate. We have to make life more miserable for him."

The Stars are a low-event team. They rank second in fewest goals against (27.4) and 13th in shots on goal at 29.9, so scoring chances are typically low in a Dallas game. Vasilevskiy has faced an average of 25.5 shots in the six games he's played against the Stars this season, so getting that number up might be a good strategy.
That said, the Stars can't overthink it, either.
"They've got a big defense," Bowness said of a Tampa Bay team that ranks sixth in fewest goals against at 2.48 and seventh in fewest shots against at 28.2. "They box out really well and they block a lot of shots, so 'Vasy' gets a lot of help in front on him."
Bowness adds, "You can't pass up any opportunity, you can't look for the perfect play, you can't squeeze your stick. You just have to be going to the net, be ready, and when that opportunity comes to shoot the puck, you shoot it. You start looking for perfect shots, you lose that opportunity. We had some good looks in here last week. It was a low-event game. We gave them the two goals they scored. We're just going to have to work very, very hard for the goals."

What to watch

Tyler Seguin played his first game of the season Monday and looked both great and tired at the same time.
After having offseason surgery on his hip and knee, Seguin played well, scored a goal and put three shots on net in 17:10 of ice time. That was significantly more than the 8-10 minutes that were planned, but Seguin looked good and didn't turn down the offer of more minutes.

So, how will he respond after a day off? The Stars are curious.
"I felt more comfortable than I thought," Seguin said after his first game. "I didn't try to overthink much. I just told myself before the game, let's rely on instincts. As the game went on, I felt better. When we got to overtime, I ran out of steam, I guess."
Bowness used Seguin on several different lines but put him back with captain Jamie Benn in the third period, and that's when Seguin scored his goal. Bowness said the plan is to get the two forwards back on the same line again Wednesday against Tampa Bay. Bowness said combining Roope Hintz and Jason Robertson on a line with Joe Pavelski creates a need to find linemates for Benn. Denis Gurianov, who's been playing on Benn's wing recently, could miss tonight's game because of a nagging injury.
"Clearly, we want him with Jamie," Bowness said of Seguin. "That's been a duo for a lot of years. And with the duo we have going with Roope and Robo, clearly (Seguin) has to be in our top six, which puts him with Jamie."

Lineup updates

Jake Oettinger will be in goal for the Stars.
He came on in relief and stopped 27-of-28 shots in a 5-4 overtime loss at Florida Monday.
Oettinger is 10-7-7 on the season with a 2.23 GAA and .918 SV%.
He's 1-1-1 against the Lightning with a 2.39 GAA and .916 SV%.
Jason Dickinson missed Monday's game against Florida but could return tonight.
Joel Hanley could be back in after being a healthy scratch the past two games.

Numbers

.760

That's the points percentage of the top three Central Division teams against the Stars this season. Tampa Bay has gone 5-1-0, Florida has gone 6-2-0 and Carolina has gone 6-1-1.

25-0-0

Tampa is perfect when leading after two periods this season, going 25-0-0. The Lightning are the only team in the NHL to accomplish that task. Dallas is 17-1-2 when leading after two periods and 1-15-9 when trailing after two periods.

5

Plano product Blake Coleman has five points (four goals, one assist) in 13 career games against the Stars. Coleman scored a penalty shot goal against the Stars in the last meeting between these two teams.

#

He said it

"We all know where we are. If I've got to worry about some of these guys not being motivated, then we have serious character issues - and I don't believe we do. I trust this group. This group has played very hard all year. I have full confidence in our guys, I believe in them."-- Bowness on the fact the team could face elimination tonight if it loses in regulation and Nashville gets two points
Victory Club memberships are available now for 2021-22! Beyond season tickets, don't miss your chance to secure the best seats for Stars home games, plus exclusive benefits, members-only experiences and much more. Click here to learn more!
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.