SAN JOSE, Calif. -- As the Stars fight for the top seed in the Central Division, they can look at a 16-7-3 divisional record and strong play against the best in the West as one reason they might succeed.
The problem is if they don’t take first, Dallas will have to blame games like Thursday’s 3-1 loss at Arizona.
Heading into the final seven games of the season, Dallas is 11-6-2 against non-playoff teams in the West, and that’s behind the pace set by the Blues (11-3-3) and Blackhawks (13-3-1). What’s worse is you can mix in losses to Eastern Conference non-playoff teams Toronto (twice), Ottawa and Columbus to add to the standings points that were frittered away.