So this looks like an exercise in shutting down one line. Cool. The Leafs can do that (they can but that doesn’t mean they won’t make it look incredibly hard.) The fact that Polak and Carrick are paired together is either a blessing or a curse for the Leafs.

It looks like it will be a return to Freddie Andersen between the pipes tonight (thank gord.) and the Stars will counter with Ben Bishop, who has been doing incredibly well for a goaltender who has a Polak/Carrick defensive pairing on his team.

On a side note, not really related to this preview at all, I have a question. Does Dallas have a rival in the NHL? I’m sure you’re going to say the Blackhawks, but I’ll revise the question to does Dallas have a rival in the league where the other team also considers them a rival? It seems like playing against Dallas is universally a mediocre experience for most teams. You’re going up against a team that’s good, not great, but has anyone ever been excited for a matchup against the Stars? A Tuesday night game in Dallas has to be one of the most forgettable nights on the schedule, and it’s probably a good thing we’re getting it out of the way when we’re just excited that regular season hockey is back.

The game starts at 8:30 pm ET, and can be seen on TSN4. Please remember to tweet about how much you hate the late start time. It gives me strength.