The set-up: The Columbus Blue Jackets will be in Dallas to take on the Stars, as both teams take the ice tonight with identical 22-15-3 records and 47 points. Columbus is tied with the NY Rangers for third-place in the Metropolitan Division, while the Stars find them selves in fourth-place in the Ventral Division. However, Columbus enters this contest beginning to show the effects of having three of its top nine forwards and a top-four defenseman out with injuries, by losing three in a row (0-2-1) and managing just two wins in its last eight outings (2-4-2). In contrast, the Stars' top performers are doing their jobs and the supporting actors are chipping in as Dallas is climbing up the standings in its division by notching at least a point in six of its last seven games (4-2-1). Tonight, the Stars look to continue that trend and earn a fifth straight victory.

Columbus: "No one's coming to help us," Blue Jackets captain Nick Foligno told reporters after the 5-0 loss to Tampa Bay on Sunday. "No one's feeling sorry for us. The league keeps coming. We've got to find a way out of it. It starts with our mentality of who we are as a team." Columbus won't have forwards Cam Atkinson (foot), Alexander Wennberg (back) and Brandon Dubinsky (facial fracture) back in the near future while defenseman Ryan Murray (upper-body) could return soon. Left wing Artemi Panarin registered 18 of his team-high 34 points in 15 games during December and reportedly skated with Foligno and rookie Pierre-Luc Dubois as coach John Tortorella shuffled his top two lines at practice Monday. Josh Anderson, who owns a team-high 14 goals, dropped down to team with Sonny Milano and Boone Jenner on the second forward unit.

Dallas: The Stars come in 13-6-2 over their last 21 games. Leading scorer Jamie Benn (37 points including 16 goals) owns a six-game point streak, while Tyler Seguin (team- high 19 goals) has five goals in the last five contests. Goaltender Ben Bishop (of Tampa Bay fame) is finding he likes Dallas just fine, boasting a .946 save percentage over his past five outings for . "I think the fans are starting to see that this is a team that has an identity," Stars head coach Ken Hitchcock told reporters after Sunday's 6-0 victory over San Jose. "They can see it on the ice, they can see the way we play, and I think they're really into what we're doing right now."

The pick: Bishop is now 17-10-2 on the season with a 2.55 GAA and .914 SP. However, his opposite number, Sergei Bobrovsky, has just one win (1-2-2) and an .896 save percentage over his last five games..Columbus has allowed 14 goals over its past three games and the Blue Jackets are 3-5-2 over their past 10 games. Meanwhile, the Stars are 14-4-1 on home ice, one of the NHL's best home records, where they are averaging 3.58 GPG. make the Over a 10* play.