Benn looks forward to Game 6 on home ice

Jamie Benn is back in the lineup on Monday night, and the Stars couldn't be happier.

The captain was suspended two games for a cross-checking penalty in Game 3. His teammates said they wanted to come back from an 0-3 deficit to allow Benn the chance to skate again this series, and they have done just that. Now Dallas has an opportunity to force Game 7, which is a huge motivation for everyone.

"I'm excited to play," Benn said. "Obviously, I didn't want the season to end on that note, so I'm looking forward to tonight."

The past two games have been an interesting study into the internal workings of the team. The penalty on Benn helped Game 3 unravel and helped dig the 3-0 hole. However, his teammates battled back and played inspired hockey in hopes they could get their captain back on the ice.

With Benn and Evgenii Dadonov (lower body) out, players like Fredrik Olofsson, Luke Glendening and Ty Dellandrea stepped up and helped secure two wins. In addition, key players like Joe Pavelski, Roope Hintz, Jason Robertson and Jake Oettinger also played big roles.

"That's our group. Next man up," Stars coach Peter DeBoer said after the 4-2 win in Game 5. "We got contributions from everyone. Gutsy, gutsy win being down a couple of guys coming in here, and we talked about taking a bite out of the elephant. We did tonight. We got a couple bites to go, but I like our group. I wouldn't bet against them."

The Stars have embraced the old adage of eating an elephant one bite at a time, and the storyline continues tonight. As good as the past two games have been, and as important as Benn's return could be, Dallas still has no wiggle room. They must win two games to continue their season.

"We put ourselves in a really tough spot, and to get to the point where we're at now shows the characters we have in the room and the belief that we have," Oettinger said. "We've done our job at this point, but unfortunately for us, our backs are still against the wall."

DeBoer has said he believes every win could put more pressure on Vegas, and said the team has no choice but to play its hardest. That said, he believes the return of Benn will be quite impactful. The 33-year-old forward was second on the team in scoring during the regular season (78 points in 82 games) and brings a significant amount of physicality. DeBoer said he saw the cross-check as an outlier in Benn's career and added that he believes they will get back a very important player.

"What happened with Jamie, it's not like he's a suspension-a-month guy," DeBoer said. "He plays a physical, clean game all of the time. He crossed the line one night. It's a non-issue. He's always been a clean, physical, intimidating player, and he's going to jump right back into that."

Benn said watching his teammates battle back for him was both horrible and wonderful. Like a player sitting in the penalty box and hoping his teammates can bail him out, Benn said he was happy to see the positive results.

"It sucks watching, especially in the playoffs," Benn said. "I thought the guys played two great games and battled back into the series and I'm looking forward to a big one tonight."

He added that it was nice to hear so many players say they didn't want Benn's season to end on a bad note.

"It means a lot," Benn said. "I was praying we were going to play two solid games just to get that chance and another kick at it here. I'm really proud of the guys."

One of the odd coincidences of Monday's possible lineups is the fact Benn and Tyler Seguin might be reunited. DeBoer split the two longtime linemates up this season to help balance the lines. Benn has played with Wyatt Johnston, and for the past two months with Dadonov. But Seguin jumped up to the right wing with Johnston in the past two games, so there is a very good chance the line tonight will be Benn-Johnston-Seguin. When Benn and Seguin played together this year, they seemed to find their old chemistry pretty quickly.

"It didn't happen often, but there were a few games this year where we didn't miss a beat," Benn said. "We'll see how the lineup shakes out tonight, but if that's the case, I'm looking forward to it."

Key Numbers

.949

Stars goalie Jake Oettinger has faced five elimination games in his NHL career and is 4-1 in those games with a .949 save percentage.

33.3

Dallas is hitting at 33.3 percent on the power play against Vegas (3-for-9). The Stars are at 32.0 percent in the playoffs with the man advantage, while Vegas is at 61.4 percent on the penalty kill.

56.0

Dallas leads the playoffs in faceoff winning percentage at 56.0 percent. Vegas is eighth at 49.8 percent. Jamie Benn leads the Stars at 63.2 percent.

He said it

"You just take it one day at a time. That's all we can do. I guess [our odds] are better than they were four days ago, but we still have to win two games and they have to win one. We'll just keep battling."

• Stars forward Luke Glendening on taking the series one game at a time.

Expected lineup

Robertson-Hintz-Pavelski
Benn-Johnston-Seguin
Marchment-Domi-Dellandrea
Kiviranta-Faksa-Glendening

Suter-Heiskanen
Lindell-Hakanpää
Harley-Hanley

Oettinger
Wedgewood

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

Video: Jamie Benn on feeling energized to come back is a Senior Staff Writer for DallasStars.com and has covered the Stars since 1994. Follow him on Twitter @MikeHeika