Stars at full pace to secure play-off place

Dundee unbeaten against Capitals this season

Dundee Stars hope to keep up their winning ways this weekend as they continue their charge for a play-off spot.

Stars are at home to Edinburgh tonight. They have won all three games against the Capitals this year and now sit just one point outside the top eight.

Head coach Omar Pacha has his team running at full pace – winning eight of their last nine games in 2018 – and they now find themselves breathing down the necks of Braehead Clan.

The Glasgow team host Fife Flyers tonight and if both Dundee and Fife win, Stars will climb into the eighth and final play-off spot, and can go three points clear if they gain two points from a trip to Nottingham tomorrow and Fife beat Clan in Kirkcaldy.

Adam Harding could possibly return to Stars’ line-up after missing the last three weeks, but Emerson Hrynyk is out.

Pacha said: “We are playing some really nice hockey.

“2018 seems to be the year we turn things around. Having a lot of heathy guys helps, key guys coming back to the line-up.

“We are finding our stride. I think it took a while for some guys to get used to the league and it’s nice to get big wins and we are scoring a lot of goals.”

Stars netminder Travis Fullerton is enjoying the team’s hot streak.

“It’s been a good run that we’ve put together over the last month. Losing can be contagious but also so can winning,” he said.

“It’s been fun to come to the rink every day.

“I think we’re getting better and more confident every time we play.”

Stars take on Corey Neilson’s seventhplaced Panthers tomorrow, with the Nottingham outfit 10 points ahead of their visitors and with a game in hand,

Brett Perlini leads the Panthers in scoring with 13 goals and 19 assists from 36 league games. Dundee will also have to monitor the threat of Yann Sauve who has put up eight goals and assisted 21 times this season.

The Nottingham club are without the injured Evan Mosey and Jordan Kelsall.

Mathieu Gagnon could give Stars plenty of opportunities on the powerplay as he has accumulated 94 penalty minutes in just 34 games.

Panthers, however, will be looking to increase the gap between themselves and the Stars. The teams have still to play each other three times this season after tomorrow’s game.