The Dallas Stars picked up a big win in Carolina on the same night their top prospect made his NHL debut.
The last time the Dallas Stars faced the Carolina Hurricanes was 11 days ago in Dallas. It was the first meeting of the season between the two clubs, with Dallas prevailing 4-2 to maintain their hold on first place in the Central Division.
It was a different set of circumstances when the two teams faced off again Saturday night in Raleigh. Dallas was mired in a four-game winless streak (0-2-2), their longest of the season. Worse, they had failed to win a game on their current four-game Eastern road swing.
The Stars' fortunes changed, as Jason Robertson and Wyatt Johnston each scored a goal to power Dallas to a gritty 2-1 victory. Miro Heiskanen got assists on both Dallas goals.
The other major storyline Saturday night was the NHL debut of Stars' top prospect Logan Stankoven, who was recalled from their AHL development affiliate in Texas. It was the second time within a week Stankoven had been brought up, staying with the club just eight hours before being loaned back to Texas in his first call-up.
With Tyler Seguin back in Dallas due to a lower-body injury, Stankoven got plenty of playing time in his first NHL action.
The game started similarly to the one in Dallas a week and a half ago, as both teams played with intensity. Jake Oettinger, who was pulled in the second period of the Stars' 4-1 loss to the Ottawa Senators on Thursday, looked sharp in the first period. His counterpart, Pyotr Kochetkov, was equally on his game until Jason Robertson scored his 19th goal of the season for a 1-0 Dallas lead, the only goal of the period. After having his first shot blocked, Robertson got a second chance and slammed the puck into a practically open net. It was Robertson's first goal in his last six games.
"It's just something instinctual," Robertson told reporters after the game. "The puck comes back to you and you've got to make a play as quick as possible. You've got to work for your bounces. It's nice to finally get one."
Carolina had a couple of chances to get on the scoreboard. Brent Burns almost got one into the net but hit the crossbar. Ryan Suter prevented the Canes from tying the game on a nice backcheck after a miscommunication between Oettinger and Esa Lindell, and Dallas went to the dressing room with the lead.
It was a promising first-period effort by a Stars team looking for some momentum. They gave up just seven shots on goal to their 6.
That momentum didn't last for long. Sebastian Aho scored his team-leading 22nd goal of the season on a breakaway, getting a wrister past Oettinger on the left glove side top-shelf at the 2:16 mark to even the score 1-1. Jesper Fast got the assist.
Wyatt Johnston put Dallas ahead 2-1 at the 8:15 mark on a wrister from the left circle, using Canes defenseman Jakob Slavin as a screen. It was Johnston's 19th goal of the season and the Stars' first shot on goal in the period.
Stankoven got his first big opportunity to score after a beautiful cross-ice feed from Johnston on a 2-on-1 break, but his wrist shot hit Kochetkov on his mask and bounced away.
Mason Marchment was hit in the face on a shot by Aho, drawing blood and sending him to the locker room with just over six minutes left in the second period. It was a scary moment for the Stars, who were already down two forwards and two defensemen due to injuries.
Late in the second period, Stankoven was held by the Canes' Jack Drury, putting the Stars on the power play. Dallas was unable to capitalize, getting only one shot on goal during that sequence. They got another chance as the second period ended, also without success.
Dallas clung to a one-goal lead heading into the second intermission. When leading after two periods, the Stars were 24-2-2. Carolina was 4-12-1 when trailing after two frames.
Marchment returned to the ice to start the third, after having cotton gauze inserted into both nostrils. Both teams were stingy on defense and in goal, and the Canes pulled Kochetkov to try and steal a late tally to even the game 6-on-5. They got one last gasp on a scrum near the net, but Oettinger was able to freeze the puck and preserve a much-needed victory.
It wasn't the prettiest of wins, but the Stars will take it after the struggles they've had on this four-game road trip.
"It was a gutsy effort by us, coming off a tough game the other night," Stars coach Pete DeBoer said during his postgame presser. "I thought we had a real commitment to defend and play hard."
Dallas' power-play unit, top 10 in the NHL, struggled, going 0-for-4 against the Canes and 1-for-11 on the trip. The penalty-kill, on the other hand, snuffed out both chances they received.
Defense was the name of the game for the Stars, blocking 25 of Carolina's shots. Suter, whose father won a gold medal for Team USA 44 years ago to the day, led the team with six blocks in one of the best defensive games of the season.
While he didn't score a point, Stankoven made a good showing in his first NHL game just two days shy of his 21st birthday. He played 21 shifts and was on the ice for 15:20, leading all Stars forwards with three shots on goal.
Stankoven's parents and 16-year-old sister flew to Raleigh and took in his debut.
"This is something you dream of when you first put the skates on," Stankoven told Bally Sports Southwest. "I owe it to my family and friends, and all my coaches back home that have helped me get to where I am today."
Dallas moved its record to 35-16-8 for 78 points. They increased their first-place lead in the Central Division after the Colorado Avalanche lost 4-3 to the Toronto Maple Leafs. The schedule doesn't get any easier, as the Stars play at home against the New York Islanders Monday before heading to Denver to face division foe Colorado on a back-to-back.
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