Dallas Stars cast out their demons against the New Jersey Devils 4-2

Before today's game began, I had a massive knot in my stomach. The reason is that the Stars have shown a lot of rust coming out of the All-Star Break in past seasons. After having two weeks off for the Four-Nations Tournament, today felt like it would be an ugly game. It felt like Squidward when he was about to direct the band at the Bubble Bowl halftime show. However, the Stars came out strong and earned a well-deserved 4-2 win over the Devils. What a way to show the rust wasn't showing after two weeks off.

I cannot say enough about how the Stars entered the Prudential Center and exorcised those Devils. They showed they could be a tough out in the playoffs. The Stars don't back down from anyone. You could have all the All-Star caliber talent on your roster, which wouldn't phase them. I could not be more proud of their performance in the first period. Even though Jack Hughes wanted to make the game interesting at the end, it didn't phase Dallas. Here are the four takeaways from this afternoon's win in Newark.

Dallas Stars vs. New Jersey Devils Recap: 4. Heck of a first period

The Dallas Stars showed no rust once the puck was dropped this afternoon. They immediately built a 2-0 lead, and didn't wait for the Devils to respond to the first goal. Evgenii Dadonov scored the first goal on a rebound put-back, while Thomas Harley scored on the power play. Lian Bichsel was ready to let his frustrations out as he was checking anyone around him. That's how the Stars have to play against playoff-caliber teams. It's a great start to the remainder of the regular season schedule.

Dallas Stars vs. New Jersey Devils Recap: 3. Scoring on the power play

It was also great seeing the Stars on the power play in the first period. That's one of the things the Stars need to improve on before the playoffs begin in mid-April. What a screen from Roope Hintz to screen Jake Allen from seeing Harley send the puck flying past him. If the Stars can do more of that on the power play moving forward, that would be awesome. I know Papa Joe isn't redirecting shots in front of the net anymore, so why not try screening the goaltender?

Dallas Stars vs. New Jersey Devils Recap: 2. Limiting Nico Hischier

Though the Stars could not stop Jack Hughes from scoring a couple of goals, silencing Nico Hischier is a win in my book. He was one of the top scorers the Stars had to stop from scoring if they wanted to win the game this afternoon. Hughes is a tough player to stop from finding the scoresheet; I wasn't surprised when he scored two goals in the third period. However, Stars fans should be proud that Hischier was silenced from sending this game to overtime this afternoon.

Dallas Stars vs. New Jersey Devils Recap: 1. Smitty got a new lid

I noticed that Casey DeSmith got a new, old Western-style goaltender helmet. Sometimes, a goaltender needs a new goalie mask design, and it helps their performance. DeSmith deserves credit for keeping the Devils at bay throughout the game. I really like the railroad track running right down the middle of the lid. I wonder if Jake Oettinger will have a new design when he starts against the New York Islanders tomorrow night. Let's see if the Stars can start this road trip with two straight wins.

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