by Andrew Lauro – Wannamakeabet Staff Writer
Dallas Stars +113 vs New York Rangers -125 12/11/17 7:00PM EST
The Stars head to Madison Square Garden to take on the Rangers Monday night. The Stars are 6-4-0 in their last 10 and are on a 3-game losing streak. The Rangers are 7-3-0 coming off a 5-2 win against the New Jersey Devils Saturday night.
Team stats thus far and their league rank:
| Team | Stars | Rangers |
| Goals For | 88(13th) | 97(7th) |
| Goals Against | 88(14th) | 86(18th) |
| Goals For Per Game Average | 2.93(15th) | 3.34(5th) |
| Goals Against Per Game Average | 2.93(17th) | 2.96(tied 15th) |
| PP% | 19.35%(15th) | 20.20%(10th) |
| PK% | 81.81%(13th) | 81.91(12th) |
| Shots For Game Average | 32.1(13th) | 31.65(15th) |
| Shots Against Game Average | 29.66(4th fewest) | 32.55(25th) |
The Stars are currently being outscored 5-13 on their current losing streak. They’re coming off a 5-3 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights where Jamie Benn found the back of the net for his first time in 9 games. Benn has 25 points on the season (12G,13A). When your top scorer goes on a drought for that long, it not only affects his game but also the team. The team seems to be in the middle of the league statistically speaking, they give up the 4th fewest amount of shots per game. The goalies seem to be letting down the team in key games. According to the Dallas Stars website Kari Lehtonen is expected to start over Ben Bishop against the Rangers. Lehtonen is 3-4-1 on the year with a GAA of 2.71 and a SV% of .903%. His career numbers against the Rangers are 7-6-1 with a GAA of 2.53 and a SV% of .922%. Not too bad despite the win loss record. What I don’t understand is why Bishop wouldn’t get the start against the Rangers he has better career numbers against them, 9-2-0 with a GAA of 2.03 and a SV% of .927%. Does it make sense why they’d start Lehtonen??
The Rangers coming off another home win they’ve won 10 of their last 11 games at MSG. They’re 12-5-2 at home on the season. There is no word that goaltender Henrik Lundqvist isn’t starting this game tomorrow. He’s been playing great at home of late despite a tough outing against the Florida Panthers where he was pulled after allowing 3 goals on 6 shots on Nov. 28th. His career numbers against the Stars are 8-5-0 with a GAA of 2.38 and a SV% of .922%. With the Rangers being hot at home of late and the Stars struggling take the Rangers at -125.
Both teams head to head in the past 10 games:
| Team | Stars | Rangers |
| Record | 4-5-1 | 6-3-1 |
| Shots Per Game Average | 29.80 | 32.00 |
| Goals Per Game Average | 2.40 | 3.00 |
| PPG | 5 | 7 |
| # of PP’s | 28 | 27 |
| PP% | 17.86% | 25.93% |
| PK% | 74.07% | 82.14% |