It's next man up for the Stars in Game 4

The great thing about playing 16 playoff games is you have a lot of experience to fall back on.

The Stars haven't been down 0-3 in a series, but they have faced an elimination game. Dallas had Game 7 on home ice against the Seattle Kraken and played some of their best hockey of the postseason. Dallas found a fine line between intensity and calm and controlled the game enroute to a methodical 2-1 win. They would like to do the same thing on Thursday to keep their season alive.

"Any time you're in an elimination game, regardless of what the series is at, it's all about your response," Stars coach Pete DeBoer said. "I think desperation is almost an automatic, but it has to be controlled desperation and focused desperation. The nice thing is we've been through an elimination game and responded well and I expect the same thing here tonight."

The Stars have a daunting task trying to win four games in a row, but it starts with winning one. DeBoer quoted the old adage of eating an elephant one bite at a time, which definitely applies here. The players say then understand they have to keep their focus short-term and not get overwhelmed by the bigger mountain.

"We know we have a good team," said defenseman Ryan Suter. "To know that we have the game within us, we can show up and be our best tonight."

The Stars in Game 7 battled through a 0-0 game more than 30 minutes before finally taking the lead against Seattle, and that's a great lesson for the team. Vegas has played very well and Golden Knights goalie Adin Hill is coming off a shutout, so there could be the need for patience on Thursday. But it seems Dallas can find that place.

"We made big mistakes last game that we know we can fix," said forward Jason Robertson. "We have a lot of veterans on this team, a lot of energy. We've had to respond all year."

Dallas has often played its best game after a bad one. Game 7 came on the heels of a 6-3 loss in Game 6. The Stars also responded to a 5-1 loss to Minnesota with three straight wins and then rebounded from a 7-2 loss to Seattle with two straight wins. That's been a huge aspect that has helped get Dallas to the Western Conference Final.

"We're just worried about trying to get our first win in this series," forward Max Domi said. "That's all that matters. Obviously, we're going to have to play some desperate hockey now with our lives at stake here. I'm looking forward to it. This group has always answered when our backs are against the wall. It should be no different [in Game 4]."

Jamie Benn is out for two games after being suspended for a crosscheck in Game 3. Evgenii Dadonov is out with a lower body injury. That means the lineup will change.

At the morning skate, rookie Wyatt Johnston (who had been centering Benn and Dadonov) was on a line with Tyler Seguin and Mason Marchment. Domi then was centering Joel Kiviranta and Ty Dellandrea. Luke Glendening, who was a healthy scratch in Game 3, is expected back in the lineup, and Fredrik Olofsson could also jump in. The Stars called up Mavrik Bourque and Rhett Gardner from the AHL, so those two are also options. Olofsson played 28 NHL games this season and has been with Dallas throughout the playoffs. Bourque had 47 points (29 goals, 27 assists) in 70 games with the Texas Stars, while Gardener had 40 points (10 goals, 30 assists) in 71 games in the AHL. Gardner also had 8 points (4 goals, 4 assists) in the playoffs for Texas.

Bourque has played no NHL games, while Gardner has played 40.

"The question becomes are you better putting a young guy in for his potentially first NHL game in a situation like this or are you going to go with someone who has been on the road with us the whole time," DeBoer said. "The easy answer is whoever gives you the best chance to win."

Bottom line, the team will have to make adjustments and find a way to get good chemistry with new lines. The group of defensemen are expected to stay the same and Jake Oettinger will be in net again.

"I feel like I've done a good job of getting the team to this point and I want to go out there and I want to be the one to out there and have a great game when our season is on the line," said Oettinger. "Now, it's up to me to do it."

Key Numbers

63.2 percent

Jamie Benn leads the Stars in faceoff winning percentage in the playoffs at 63.2 percent. He has been suspended for two games. Radek Faksa stepped up last game and went 10-3 in Benn's absence.

27:56

Stars defenseman Miro Heiskanen averages 27:56 in time on ice per game. That's second most in the playoffs.

22

Dallas forward Roope Hintz leads the playoffs in scoring with 22 points (10 goals, 12 assists) in 16 games.

He said it

"I'm never going to give up, I'm never going to stop believing in myself. I'm going to go out there tomorrow and put it all on the line and put my best foot forward."

• Oettinger on how he bounces back from getting pulled for the third time in the past eight games.

Expected lineup

Robertson-Hintz-Pavelski
Marchment-Johnston-Seguin
Kiviranta-Domi-Dellandrea
Olofsson-Faksa-Glendening

Suter-Heiskanen
Lindell-Hakanpää
Harley-Hanley

Oettinger
Wedgewood

This story was not subject to the approval of the National Hockey League or Dallas Stars Hockey Club.

Video: DeBoer on Gardner and Borque being called up is a Senior Staff Writer for DallasStars.com and has covered the Stars since 1994. Follow him on Twitter @MikeHeika