The Chicago Blackhawks will be without goaltender Corey Crawford on Tuesday against the Dallas Stars. Scott Darling will start in place of Crawford, who has been out for the past three games with an injury.
Crawford is dealing with an upper-body injury and is considered to be "day-to-day" for Chicago, who will start a four-game road trip after playing the Stars. Darling will be in net for the fourth straight game for Crawford, who has been out since allowing five goals to the Los Angeles Kings last week. The Stars are leading the Central Division, making this an important matchup for the Blackhawks.
Coach Joel Quenneville said that Crawford will be out on Tuesday and that his status for the road trip remain "up in the air" for the team. Quenneville said he was not sure that Crawford would travel with the team for the matchup against Calgary on Saturday night. Darling will be in net again on Tuesday, marking the first time he is starting four straight games since December.
"All three games were fine," Quenneville said. "His last two [a 4-0 victory over the Jets and a 3-2 shootout loss to the Wild] were really, really good. Got us points in the last two and almost a pair [against the Wild]. I like the continuation."
Darling has played well in place of Crawford, posting a 1-1-1 record with a .945 save and 1.64 goals-against average in the three starts. Crawford has been one of the best goalies in the league this season, going 35-18-4 with a 2.32 goals against average and a .926 save percentage. The goalie has also posted seven shutouts this season.
The matchup with the Stars is a big deal for the division standings, as the Blackhawks are in third place behind Dallas and the St. Louis Blues. Chicago is 42-24-7 on the season with 91 points, four back of Dallas and two back of St. Louis in the standings. The Blackhawks have hit a bit of a rough patch while going 4-4-2 over their last 10 games, but they have the chance to make up some ground down the stretch.
The Blackhawks have not played well against the Stars this season, winning just one of the four matchups that the teams have played. The last two games between the teams have seen the Blackhawks give up nine combined goals while scoring just four.
"It's very important for us, especially at home against a team that's played well against us and we haven't fared very well," Quenneville said. "We want to make sure we're ready. We know the importance of the game, a four-point swing and we have a lot of room to make up for as well."
