Heiskanen is the swing factor on this card. He drives the Dallas transition game and eats the hard minutes. Without him, everyone else on the back end moves up a slot against a Columbus team that has seen this group very recently. Whether he plays, and how Dallas covers his minutes if he doesn't, is the first thing to watch before puck drop.
Goaltending is the other worry for Dallas. Jake Oettinger allowed 4 goals on 20 shots in Washington, and that's not a line Dallas can live with in back-to-back starts. The Stars' last 5 games have produced 37 combined goals. That includes a 6-3 win over the Islanders and losses of 5-1 to New Jersey and 5-2 to Montreal. When this team leaks, it leaks in bunches.
Columbus has the scheduling quirk. The Blue Jackets hosted Colorado on Tuesday and have Buffalo the night after this one, so Thursday is the front half of a back-to-back. That makes the goalie choice and how hard the coaches lean on the top pairs worth watching. They also lost 3-1 in Dallas in the last meeting, so they know exactly what's coming.
Puck drop is 7:00 PM ET. Dallas is the team with the results this week and the injury list to match. Columbus has home ice, a fresh look at an opponent it just played, and a chance to test a Stars defense that may not have its anchor.
