Stars looking forward to Benn's return in Game 6 of Western Final

DALLAS -- The Dallas Stars will get a boost to their lineup when captain Jamie Benn returns for Game 6 of the Western Conference Final against the Vegas Golden Knights on Monday (8:00 p.m. ET; ESPN, ESPN+, CBC, SN, TVAS).

Benn served a two-game suspension for cross-checking Vegas forward Mark Stone early in Game 3 on Tuesday. The Stars went on to lose that game, 4-0, which put them on the brink of elimination.

"He's an angry bear walking around, waiting to play again," Dallas coach Peter DeBoer said. "I think he's on pins and needles. He's been sitting with our video coaches watching the game. He's not a very good spectator, so I think he'll be excited to play."

With Benn sidelined, the Stars won Game 4, 3-2 in overtime. They followed that up with a 4-2 win in Vegas in Game 5 to cut the series lead to 3-2.

Benn has three goals and eight assists in 16 games this postseason, with two of those goals coming on the power play. He's scored only one goal in the series against the Golden Knights but brings more than just offense to the Stars' lineup.

"There's not many 6-foot-3, 220-pound power forwards that can score, create room, and have a physical and an offensive presence on the game," DeBoer said. "Power play, all those things. He's a welcome addition back for us, and that's just the hockey piece. The fact that he's in our dressing room, with our guys, the leadership piece is another part of it."

Said defenseman Thomas Harley: "We just need him to be himself. He's got a couple of extra days of rest, which I think is huge. He's our leader out there, he's our captain, so you know he's going to bring the intensity, and we're just going to follow him."

RELATED: [Complete Golden Knights vs. Stars series coverage]

With Benn returning, the Stars will be forced to make some decisions in their forward lines. Fredrik Olofsson, who played on the fourth line, had five shots on goal and had a chance to end Game 4 in regulation before being stopped by Vegas goaltender Adin Hill. Ty Dellandrea scored twice in the third period of the 4-2 win in Game 5 on Saturday.

"[Those decisions are] a good problem to have," DeBoer said. "Your captain is coming back into the lineup. Guys have battled their [butts] off to give him a chance to play again, which he is going to tomorrow night. We'll make those tough decisions tomorrow. Sometimes those decisions are made for you with injuries and things like that."

One player that falls into that category is forward Evgenii Dadonov, who has missed the past two games with a lower-body injury. DeBoer said he had been seeing doctors and getting imaging done with the team on the road for Game 5 and would have more insight into his status for Game 6 on Monday.

That likely means at least one, if not two, forwards could come out of the lineup, depending on Dadonov's availability.

"We're all professionals here and we know that whoever gets called upon is expected to go out and get the job done," Olofsson said. "I didn't play for I don't know how many games back there, but I knew you've kind of got to stay ready. You need everyone this time of year.

"I'm just thankful I get to come in and help out and pitch in in any way I can. So, if I get the chance, I'll do what I've been doing. But if I not, I'll stay ready, too. Whatever we've got to do to keep going."

For the Golden Knights, they're focusing more on their own game than Benn's potential impact or what lineup the Stars could use.

"They're 2-0 without him, so we'll worry about our own team right now," Golden Knights coach Bruce Cassidy said.

Said Vegas forward Reilly Smith: "He's been a good player in his career. He's good on face-offs, so there's certain things like that that he can help their team out. There's also things that he can hurt his team. So, we'll see who we're kind of playing against, but we're mostly focused on what we can do."