Head coach Glen Gulutzan appeared to be pulling all the right strings in his first season behind the Dallas bench, and mixed with a heavy dose of quality goaltending from Kari Lehtonen, the Stars used their widespread scoring depth to compile wins and entrench themselves in the playoff picture. It hasn’t been as smooth a ride of late, as the Stars have won just three of their last 10 games and currently sit on the outside looking in with regards to the conference’s top eight playoff spots. Gulutzan and the Stars were particularly disappointed with their performance on Tuesday night in Phoenix, a game in which they trailed early and didn’t get anything going in a 4-1 loss.

Dallas currently boasts 13 players with at least 15 scoring points on the year, and one of the club’s strengths has been the ability to get offensive production from both the forward positions and on defense. After acquiring defenseman Alex Goligoski from the Pittsburgh Penguins last season, he has been a two-way threat for the Stars who have seen a boost in scoring from defensemen this year. Goligoski’s 19 points lead all Dallas blue liners and he’s got one more point than rejuvenated veteran Sheldon Souray, who was enjoyed a solid bounce-back year in the Lone Star state.

Michael Ryder continues to lead the Stars in goal-scoring with 19 tallies and 36 points on the year, and sophomore standout Jamie Benn is the overall scoring leader in Dallas with 46 points (15 goals, 31 assists). Their success of late seems to rest with the goaltenders, and it’s not yet known if Lehtonen or Richard Bachman will start against the Blue Jackets as the Stars begin a set of back-to-back games.

G	Nash (17)	Ryder (19)
A	Prospal (24)	Benn (31)
PTS	Nash (35)	Benn (46)
PIM	Dorsett (137)	Ott (105)
+/-	MacKenzie (+4)	Benn (+13)
W/L	Sanford (10-12-4)	Lehtonen (19-12-1)
GAA	Sanford (2.50)	Lehtonen (2.43)
SVP	Sanford (.915)	Lehtonen (.919)