Apr 5, 2013; Anaheim, CA, USA; Dallas Stars right wing Alex Chiasson (12) celebrates after scoring a goal against the Anaheim Ducks during the first period at the Honda Center. Mandatory Credit: Kelvin Kuo-USA TODAY Sports

The first two meetings of three in a row between the Dallas Stars and Anaheim Ducks were not in the Stars favor as they lost 4-0 in the first game and then 5-2 in the last game. The final meeting was very different for the Stars. The team played a stronger, better game and were able to obviously frustrate the Ducks. In beating the Ducks, the Stars also snapped a three game losing streak with Kari Lehtonen stopping 27 shots out of the 28 he faced for the win. Viktor Fasth stopped 22 shots out of the 25 he faced for the loss.

Lehtonen  foiled several Ducks chances, ensuring the Ducks wouldn’t capitalize in the Stars zone. The Stars kicked of scoring when trade acquisition from Boston Lane MacDermid picked up an Antoine Roussel pass  for a 1-0 Stars lead at the 9:03 mark in the first period. But the lead didn’t last long as David Steckel fed Andrew Cogliano for a 1-1 tie at the 9:21 mark.

While MacDermid served a high sticking penalty, Eric Nystrom caught Viktor Fasth out of the crease to give the Stars a 2-1 lead at the 13:54 mark in the first period. Vernon Fiddler and Alex Chiasson hit the neutral zone with speed after the Ducks turned the puck over, and Chiasson scored his first NHL goal on the power play for the 3-1 lead at the 19:12 mark in the first period.

At 7:43 in the second period, the Dallas Stars went on the power play, but couldn’t find way to get past Fasth. The team did have a better middle frame than in the past few games though, especially during the Ryan Garbutt and Trevor Daley penalties in the second half of the period. Strong penalty kills held the Ducks, who were trying diligently to find easy ways to get into the zone, in neutral ice.

The Stars scrambled to keep the lead as Matthew Lombardi had a strong chance on Lehtonen and the net, but the puck went wide. After a turnover by the Stars, Teemu Selanne managed to sneak one through to Kari Lehtonen, but the puck hit the left post and bounced away. As the game came to a close, the Stars made a final push into Anaheim ice with Jamie Benn and Alex Chaisson leading the way. Despite a stunning long-distance shot by Benn that snuck behind Fasth, linesman said the Stars were offside.

The next game for the Dallas Stars is on Sunday when they face the San Jose Sharks at 3 p.m. at the HP Pavilion in San Jose.

Game Notes

Goal Scorers

Stars:   Lane MacDermid (9:03-1^st), Eric Nystrom (SHG 13:54-1^st), Alex Chiasson (PP 19:12-1^st),

Ducks: Andrew Cogliano (09:21 – 1^st)

Starting Line Up

Forwards

Whitney-Benn-Chiasson
Eriksson-Eakin-Fraser
Nystrom-Fiddler-Cole
MacDermid-Roussel-Garbutt

Defense                                                                    

Dillon-Goligoski
Robidas-Daley
Larsen-Rome

Goaltenders

Lehtonen (starter)

Bachman (back-up)

Scratches: Tom Wandell

No injuries to report from the Stars side.

April 3, 2013; Anaheim, CA, USA; Anaheim Ducks right wing Kyle Palmieri (51) scores a goal against the Dallas Stars during the second period at Honda Center. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

Game one of the season’s three-game series with the Anaheim Ducks saw the Dallas Stars fall 4-0 at the American Airlines Center. The day after the loss, general manager Joe Nieuwendyk made three trades that sent Jaromir Jagr to Boston, Derek Roy to Vancouver and Tomas Vincour to Colorado. A day after the trade deadline, the new looked Stars went into the Honda Center to take on the Ducks and try to find their game.

Last night, the Stars once again saw the Ducks dominate the game, winning with a final score of 5-2. Kari Lehtonen stopped 22 out of the 26 shots he faced while Viktor Fasth stopped 23 out of the 25 shots he faced.

An early assault in the first period had the Stars running around in the zone as Ducks forward Kyle Palmieri and Teemu Selanne were cycling the puck around looking for a lead but goaltender Kari Lehtonen wouldn’t give up control of the net. On a delayed penalty to Loui Eriksson, Radek Dvorak got his first goal as an Anaheim Duck with the redirection of an across-the-ice pass from Ryan Getzlaf at the 11:44 mark.

It all went downhill period for the Stars in the second period. With Anaheim on the power play, Teemu Selanne launched the puck over Lehtonen to put the Ducks up 2-0 over the Stars at 11:33 after getting a pass from Ryan Getzlaf. Kyle Palmieri took the puck hard to the net and buried his own rebound past Lehtonen, giving the Ducks a 3-0 lead late in the second period.

The Stars did find their offense in the third period, breaking any chance off falling into a shutout streak at 111:14 minutes. Erik Cole squeezed the puck past Anahiem goalie Viktor Fasth off a nice feed from Vernon Fiddler at the 2:48 mark. Ryan Getzlaf returned Cole’s goal with a backhanded shot that sailed to the top of the net, giving the Ducks a 4-1 lead with 9:30 remaining in the third period.

Newcomer Lane MacDermid, who was acquired in the Jagr deal with Boston, got his first NHL goal with a nice shot from the left circle that brought the score to 4-2 with 1:24 left in the third period.  After the Stars pulled Lehtonen for an empty net and extra attacker, Andrew Cogliano shot one into the net from the neutral zone, putting the Ducks up 5-2 with only 3.8 seconds left in the game.

The next game, and final one with the Anaheim Ducks in the regular season, is on Friday night with a 9:30 p.m. start time.

Game Notes

Goal Scorers

Stars:  Erik Cole (2:48,3^rd), Lane MacDermid (1:24,3^rd)

Ducks: Radek Dvorak (11:44, 1^st), Teemu Selanne (11:33, 2^nd), Kyle Palmieri (16:38, 2^nd), Ryan Getzlaf (9:30,3^rd), Andrew Cogliano (EN-19:56,3^rd)

Goalies

Starting Lineup Up

Forwards

Nystrom-Benn-Cole

Whitney-Eriksson-Fraser

Roussel-Eakin-Chiasson

MacDermid-Fiddler-Garbutt

Defense

Dillon-Goligoski
Daley-Robidas
Rome-Larsen

Goaltenders

Lehtonen (starter)

Bachman (back-up)

Scratches:  Tom Wandell