
SAN JOSE -– One game after facing perhaps the best blue line in the NHL, the Sharks will get a good test again in Dallas on Saturday when they line up against one of the most prolific offenses at American Airlines Center.
The Stars are in first place in the Western Conference (8-2-0), leap-frogging the Predators on Thursday night with a 4-3 OT win at home against Vancouver. Their 35 goals scored are second in the NHL only to the Montreal Canadiens.
“The thing that jumps right off the page at you is their skill up front,” Pete DeBoer said on Friday, shortly before the Sharks’ charter to Texas. “That’s as dynamic a group of forwards as there is. They’re playing with confidence right now. We’re going to have to make sure that our attention to detail is real good.”
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Bay Area and California sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
Jamie Benn paces the Stars’ attack, and is at the top of the NHL leaderboard in goals (9) and points (17). Tyler Seguin isn’t far behind with 14 points, while Jason Spezza, Ales Hemsky and newcomer Patrick Sharp are all dangerous, too.
“They’ve got a lot of skill and [make] a lot of plays off the rush,” Tommy Wingels said. “Some dynamic forwards and guys who can move the puck. We’re going to have to be smarter with the puck, and limit their odd man rushes and try to bury our chances.”
Although the Sharks (5-4-0) played well enough to beat Nashville on Wednesday at home, it was still a disappointing 2-1 regulation defeat. They’ll enter the weekend’s back-to-back, which also features a game in Colorado on Sunday, having lost four of their last five.
[KURZ: Sharks notes: Karlsson in holding pattern; Couture update]
San Jose Sharks
Find the latest San Jose Sharks news, highlights, analysis and more with NBC Sports Bay Area and California.
They should be well rested and prepared, though, with practices and video sessions four days this week. DeBoer was pleased with how the week went, but now it’s time to see some results.
“Nothing reinforces those messages more than wins,” he said. “That’s where we’ve got to get to. It’s nice to play a good team like Nashville close, but we’ve got to find a way to win games.”
Playing back-to-back afternoon games is abnormal, especially in the Western Conference. The Sharks will drop the puck with the Stars at 2 p.m. local time on Saturday, and 1 p.m. in Denver (both games start at noon PT in the Bay Area).
Joe Pavelski doesn’t seem to mind the schedule, though. After all, barring any travel problems, the Sharks should be able to get to Denver on Saturday evening and have plenty time to rest and recover before Sunday’s game.
“I think players like day games,” Pavelski said. “You wake up, get to the rink, play the game and you actually have a little bit of time after.”
* * *
The Sharks recalled forward Bryan Lerg and defenseman Dylan DeMelo from the AHL Barracuda on Friday. The pair practiced with the team, and will likely serve as extra bodies for the Colorado game in case someone gets hurt in Dallas.