Dallas Stars Get Back on Track with Win over Devils

The Dallas Stars beat the New Jersey Devils tonight at the American Airlines Center to close out their home stand with a win by a score of 4-3. They improved their record to (11-13-5) and have won two of their three games at home over the past week. The team will now take a few days off before they begin their three game road trip to Western Canada.

Recap

The first period was full of offensive opportunities in both zones; however, Dallas broke through and got the 1-0 lead off of a Tyler Seguin blast from the slot at 14:29. They then took a 2-0 lead a few minutes later as Jason Spezza got his sixth goal of the season off of a nice feed from Seguin and Antoine Roussel. Dallas took their 2-0 lead into the first intermission.

The second period started with a Devils power play tally when Jamie Benn was in the box for a phantom high-sticking call in which no contact was actually made. The Devils then tied the game on a point shot after gaining momentum from their power play goal. With about five minutes left in the second Trevor Daley regained the lead for the Stars with a slap shot. Shawn Horcoff then gave Dallas the two-goal lead for the second time in the game with his wrist shot from Vernon Fiddler and Colton Sceviour. The Stars took the 4-2 lead into the second intermission.

Dallas continued to push in the third period, while managing to hold off the rushes of the New Jersey Devils. Kari Lehtonen stopped a few key opportunities throughout the period to keep Dallas’ 4-2 lead. The Devils pulled their goalie, Keith Kinkaid, with just under two minutes left in regulation in hopes of tying it up. Scott Gomez scored off of a rebound with 1:07 remaining to make it a one-goal game. That would be as close as they’d get, however, because time ran out granting Dallas the two points with their 4-3 victory.

Thoughts and Observations

Starting the Right Way

The Dallas Stars managed to start the game exactly how they wanted to for the first time in a while. They took a 2-0 lead off of goals by NHL points and goals leader Tyler Seguin and summer acquisition Jason Spezza. The Stars also got some key saves from goalie Kari Lehtonen that no doubt helped boost the confidence of the team. That start, however, was jeopardized when the Devils scored two goals in 3:20 to tie it up in the second period. In typical, unpredictable Stars fashion Dallas managed to regain their two-goal lead with goals from Trevor Daley and Shawn Horcoff late in the second. They then proceeded to stress out Stars fans as they gave up a goal with 1:07 remaining to once again cut their lead in half. Regardless of the ups and downs of the game, Dallas looked like a completely different team than the one that played on Tuesday and that is something all Stars fans can certainly be happy about.

Reuniting the “Super Line”

Head Coach Lindy Ruff reassembled the “super line” of Seguin, Spezza and captain Jamie Benn and it worked. Spezza is a noticeably different player when on the top line with the dynamic duo and he got himself back in the goal column, with Seguin’s assist, tonight. For the Stars to be successful they have to have scoring from down the line-up and one can only hope that this goal will jumpstart an offensive streak for Spezza.

For the Future

Starts like tonight’s game prove the skill and ability of this Dallas Stars team; it’s just a matter of which Stars team comes to play each night and that’s a shot in the dark. This season when the Stars are on their game they can out skate nearly any team, but when they’re not they prove just why they’re the worst defensive team in the league. Yet again it’s a matter of the Stars finding consistency in their play, while also managing to get their record above .500. For now, the Stars can appreciate how they played the game tonight, but need to look forward to and focus on their upcoming games in order to execute that improvement.

Thanks for reading! Be sure to check back for the preview and post game analysis on Wednesday as the Stars visit Vancouver to take on the Canucks!