The Stars have six games coming up against the bottom two teams in the Central -- Columbus and Detroit -- starting on Thursday. Win the majority of those, hope Nashville slows down from its tremendous hot streak, and who knows where you are entering May.
There still is hope for those inside the room.
"I think we have all the pieces here," defenseman Jamie Oleksiak said recently. "We're kind of figuring out our team now, and a couple bounces go our way in the OTs and the shootouts, it's a whole different outlook on the season. I think we've just got to stick with it and look at the positives. We're turning this thing around, slowly but surely. I think it's going to be a good character test for us."
Missing both Radulov and Bishop will be tough. Radulov was second on the team in points per game at 1.09 with 12 points (four goals, eight assists) in 11 games. When healthy, he is a dynamic offensive force who could make a huge difference in the 2-12 record in overtime and shootouts.
"He's one of our top offensive players," Bowness said of the 34-year-old winger. "He's a threat 5-on-5, he's a threat in overtime, he's a threat in the shootout, he's a threat on the power play. When he's not in the lineup, we really miss him."