COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Dallas Stars’ losing streak reached four games and the early free fall continued with a 3-2 loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets.



1. The Dallas Stars have played eight games, tied for the most in the NHL thus far.



They also have the 28th-most points and a 1-6-1 record.



It’s a deep hole the Stars will try to dig themselves out of with just under 90 percent of the season remaining.



If we use 93 points as the playoff cut line — that’s how many the Stars had as a wild-card team last season — Dallas would need to accumulate 90 points in their final 74 games. Realistically, that would require a record that would look something like 43-27-4 in the final 74 games.



That’s the equivalent of playing like a 100-point team for the remainder of the season.



So the question becomes, can the Stars play like a top-five team in the league consistently starting Friday in...