By Kris Smith
The Stars are back on the ice after a short turnaround from a four-point weekend as they beat Coventry Blaze 2-1 on Saturday and Glasgow Clan 7-3 on Sunday.
Spencer Naas and Ryan Valentini fired the Stars to victory in Coventry and were on the scoresheet again on Sunday as they demolished their Scottish rivals on Tayside.
James Phelan and Jake Elmer put Dundee ahead opening minutes before a double from Naas made it 4-0 and Valentini’s powerplay strike in the second period gave them some extra breathing room, before Carter Johnson and Anthony Rinaldi finished off the job.
Adam Keefe’s men have prevailed in four of their six meetings against the Stars this season but have not had it easy against Dundee, with the last two games being decided by a single goal and a shootout.
The last time Marc LeFebvre took his side to Northern Ireland, the Giants came away with a 3-0 win after a closely contested 1-0 game for 55 minutes, with David Phillips, Greg Printz and Bobby MacIntyre all on the scoresheet for Belfast.
The most recent clash between the two teams was just weeks ago as the Giants avenged the Hogmanay shootout defeat with a 3-2 victory at the DIA, as they had to survive through a very late comeback effort from Dundee.
Stars captain, Drydn Dow leads his side in points against Belfast with eight (2G, 6A) in six games this season and Ara Nazarian tops the Giants scoring against Dundee with three goals and three assists, through six fixtures,
The Stars should have a full roster available for selection tonight with one import player having to miss out as a healthy scratch.
Discussing a tough mid-week test on the road, Stars Head Coach, LeFebvre said: “We know it is a tough matchup every time we go into that building and they are defending champions for a reason, so we have to be prepared.
“Our guys are in good form right now, we had two strong performances at the weekend and want to carry that forward into tonight.”
“It has been a good battle with them all season, whether that has been in their building or our rink, they have been fun games to be a part of.
“However, we have to get a result over there at some point, we have to play there two more times this season and if things were to finish today then I think we would play them in the playoff Quarter-Finals but we will worry about that when the time comes.
“We know that it is a tough building to go into and win points, they have a deep and veteran line-up, so we have to be ready to go when the puck drops.”
Face-off for tonight’s road game in Belfast is at 7pm.
All images: William Cherry/Presseye.
