Welcome to the NHL On Tap. Three NHL.com editors will share what they want most from the program every day. Today, their choices start from a single game on Sunday.

Tkachuk’s potential debut impacts Ottawa

Brady Tkachuk could make his season debut when the Ottawa Senators host the Dallas Stars on Sunday (5 p.m. ET; NHLN, TVAS, TSN5, BSSW, NHL LIVE). The forward signed a seven-year, $ 57.5 million contract Thursday and missed Ottawa’s first two games after missing training camp. The Senators are 1-1-0 without him, beating the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-1 on Wednesday and losing 3-2 in Toronto on Saturday. They’re starting a four-game home streak, which should give Tkachuk a chance to jump into the season and find his game without having to worry about travel and all that goes with it. It may be important for the Senators as they seek to establish their game and some consistency, but Tkachuk is no lock to play on Sunday. The Stars just lost 3-1 to the Boston Bruins on Saturday after beating the New York Rangers 3-2 in overtime on Thursday. They need more consistency with their puck possession. They had pockets of difficulty in their first two games as the puck seemed to be their nemesis. Anton Khudobin should start for Dallas. The goalkeeper made six saves in relief Braden Holtby Thursday. – Dan Rosen, Senior Writer

Stars, Senators slow down

A trend that too often hurt the Stars and Senators last season once again cost them in their respective losses on Saturday. Dallas scored the first 15:58 without a shot on goal and was outscored 17-5 in the first period against the Bruins, when the defenseman Ryan suter said fatigue was a factor when trying to get the puck into the neutral zone. Tkachuk could provide a needed spark for the Senators if he plays after they failed to recover from a 2-0 shot at 8:06 of the first period against the Maple Leafs. Last season, the Stars scored 39 goals in the first period, 26th in the NHL, and only the Philadelphia Flyers (63) allowed more first-period goals than the Senators (62). “You can’t feel comfortable in a game on the road, and that’s what we did,” said Ottawa coach DJ Smith. “At the end of the day it was the difference, the 2-0 lead was the difference. We had guys who didn’t play hard enough early on, guys who were in the League who have to give the example for our young guys. “- Jon Lane, Editor-in-Chief

Dallas needs a spark on offense

The Stars continue their road trip to four season opener and are looking for their best offensive players so as not to be tracked. Captain Jamie Benn has a helper; forward Alexander Radulov, Tyler seguin and Joe pavelski were each held scoreless and combined for eight shots on goal in two games. Dallas must go offensive in their attempt to return to contender status, having missed out on the Stanley Cup playoffs last season after qualifying for the Stanley Cup final in 2019-20. – Tim Campbell, Editor-in-Chief

Sunday schedule

Dallas Stars vs. Ottawa Senators (5 p.m. ET; NHLN, TVAS, TSN5, BSSW, NHL LIVE)

Khudobin is likely to start for the Stars after Holtby made 37 saves on Saturday. He’s amassed at least one point in each of his 10 games against the Senators (8-0-2 with a 2.17 goals-against average and .935 save percentage) and is 3-0 -1 with a 1.97 GAA and .947 save percentage in Ottawa since joining the NHL in 2009-10. Dallas forward Roope hintz (98) and defender Miro Heiskanen (97) are each approaching 100 points in the NHL.