5 NHL Questions: Top teams meet in Anaheim

A daily NHL feature that asks five questions about the days games. Will they be answered? (And no, that does not count as one of the questions.)

by Adam Gretz

Feb 5, 2014, 2:59 PM UTC

David Banks-USA TODAY Sports

1. Will Sidney Crosby end his five-game goal slump?

Sidney Crosby hasn't scored a goal in five games for the Penguins, which seems like a long time for a player like Crosby. Will he find the back of the net against the Buffalo Sabres? It's the 15th time since the start of the 2006-07 season that Crosby has gone at least five games without scoring a goal, including the second such stretch this season, so even though it's rare, it does happen from time to time.

2. Will Ryan Miller make a convincing argument to win the No. 1 job for team USA?

We still don't know who Team USA will start in net during the Olympics but we do know the decision is down to Los Angeles Kings goalie Jonathan Quick and Buffalo Sabres goalie Ryan Miller. Coach Dan Bylsma has had a close look at both goalies over the past couple of weeks (both Los Angeles and Buffalo have played the Penguins) and he's going to get another look at Miller on Wednesday. The last time he faced Pittsburgh he stopped 31 of 33 shots.

3. Will Anaheim get back to its winning ways at home?

The game of the night is in Anaheim where the top two teams — the Blackhawks and Ducks — meet. After starting the season 20-0-2 on home ice the Ducks have now lost four of their past six home games, including two in a row. Will they get back to their winning ways with a win over the Blackhawks?

4. Will the Sharks score more than two goals?

San Jose has had a bit of a power outage lately having scored more than one goal (excluding shootout goals) just once in its past five games. Not surprisingly, the Sharks have lost four of those games. Can they find the back of the net against Kari Lehtonen and the Dallas Stars?

5. Can the Dallas Stars catch the Vancouver Canucks in the playoff race?

If Dallas can beat San Jose the Stars will most into a tie with Vancouver for the final wild card spot in the Western Conference with 63 points and still have a game in hand. The Stars’ recent run, combined with the Canucks’ collapse has allowed Dallas to stay very much in the race. Will they catch the Canucks on Wednesday?