First Shift: Stars look to turn tables in Game 2 against Golden Knights

Pete DeBoer has some hard choices on the fourth line, but he also has some good choices.

With the return of Evgenii Dadonov from a lower-body injury that kept him out for two months, DeBoer decided he wanted the veteran forward back in the lineup. DeBoer coached Dadonov in Florida and Vegas, and said his time with the versatile 35-year-old made it simple to put him back on the ice.

“Dadonov is an easy one,” DeBoer said. “My history with the player, his history in the playoffs, the type of game he plays. He had a good season this year, he missed a ton of time and he still had 12 goals. A lot of them were even strength goals. I trust him this time of year, I think he’s a playoff impact player. His resume includes Olympics and World Championships at the highest level.”

Dadonov was acquired in a trade with Montreal last season. After bouncing between the NHL, AHL and KHL, he has played in the NHL for the past eight seasons. He had 12 goals among 23 points in 51 games. He has been used on lines with Matt Duchene and Wyatt Johnston this season, so the assignment on the fourth line is a new challenge. But he had four goals among 10 points in 16 playoff games with the Stars last season, so there is real trust there from DeBoer.

“He’s built for this,” DeBoer said. “Despite the fact he hasn’t played recently, that’s an easy decision to put him in.”

Of course, that means one of Radek Faksa, Sam Steel or Craig Smith had to come out. Smith has played very well and has 11 goals among 20 points, but he doesn’t take faceoffs or kill penalties. Faksa has won 54.4 percent of his draws and leads Stars forwards in shorthanded time on ice at 2:14 per game. Steel has won 45.0 percent of his faceoffs and is second among forwards in shorthanded time on ice at 1:51 per game.

“The tough decision is who comes out and you’re into things like faceoffs and penalty killing,” DeBoer said. “There are situational roles that come into that.”

Dallas allowed two power play goals against in Game 1, but DeBoer said he is confident in the penalty kill, which ranks fourth in the NHL at 82.7 percent over the past two seasons.

“Both of our special teams have been excellent in my time here,” DeBoer said, including a power play that ranks fifth at 24.6 percent. “It’s rare to have one of your special teams in the top 10, never mind both. I’ve never had that before. I think last night was a little bit of an aberration. I think we can do a better job than we did. Some nights, everything they shoot goes in, and some nights you have to wash it and not overthink it.”

Key Numbers

56.5 percent
When a road team wins Game 1 in a best-of-seven NHL series, it wins the series 56.5 percent of the time.

28
In 31 career games (regular and postseason) against the Stars, Vegas forward Mark Stone has 28 points (9 goals, 19 assists). 

38
Dallas ranked second in the NHL in wins when leading after two periods with 38. Vegas was 11th at 31.

He Said It

“Every NHL player wants to be considered a playoff player. When the chips are on the line, you want that to be part of your resume. I don’t think it’s an accident what he did, and once you do that, you have an internal expectation to do it again. Now, is he going to dominate numbers-wise like he did last year? I don’t know. We’re built a little differently than we were last year. But I’m confident he’s going to have a major impact again this playoff.”

- Stars coach Pete DeBoer on the expectation for center Roope Hintz, who led the Stars in playoff scoring last season with 24 points (10 goals, 14 assists) in 19 games.

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

Mike Heika is a Senior Staff Writer for DallasStars.com and has covered the Stars since 1994. Follow him on Twitter @MikeHeika.