The Dallas Stars came back home after a 16-day hiatus to halt a streaking Carolina Hurricanes team.

Over the course of an 82-game season, wins typically come in all forms: come-from-behind thrillers, one-goal nail-biters, blowouts.

The Dallas Stars have had their share of all three this season, particularly the one-goal squeakers. Prior to Tuesday's matchup against the Carolina Hurricanes, the Stars' last seven games were decided by one goal.

This game was an exception, as the Stars came away with a 4-2 victory to maintain their hold on the Central Division lead by two points over the Colorado Avalanche. It was Dallas's first home game in 16 days, and they were eager to bring their A game against a top 10 club.

Both teams started out fast in the first period and had several opportunities to strike first. Wyatt Johnston, Jason Robertson and Roope Hintz each were denied by Canes goalie Pyotr Kochetkov.

Finally, at the 9:53 mark, Hintz broke free down the left side, faked a slap shot and put one under Kochetkov's left pad after he was completely fooled by the fake. It was Hintz's team-leading 23rd goal of the season, with assists by Pavelski and Robertson.

At the start of the second period, it only took 13 seconds for the Hurricanes to even the score. Seth Jarvis fed Jordan Staal, who was wide open at the top of the crease. Staal didn't miss, placing a shot into the top left corner of the net for his seventh goal of the season.

Nils Lundkvist had a golden opportunity to put the Stars back in front, but was caught from behind and couldn't get off a shot. However, Mason Marchment got the lead back after getting open. He received a pass from Lundkvist and sent a missile past Kochetkov's glove from the left circle. It was Marchment's 17th goal of the season, and his point streak was extended to seven games.

Following a turnover, the Canes' Jordan Martinook took a shot that ricocheted off Jesper Fast's left skate and into the net to knot the score at 2-2. It was Fast's sixth goal this season.

Robertson scored what proved to be the winning goal at 4:35 of the second period to put Dallas back in front 3-2. With two Hurricane defenders surrounding Hintz in the slot, Robertson rifled a shot from the right circle to give him a team-high 54 points this season. He now has 17 points in 11 career games against Carolina.

After the Canes removed Kochetkov late in the third, Matt Duchene scored an empty net goal from the Dallas zone to make it 4-2.

Carolina thought they had answered with 1:32 left on a 6-on-5 after a scrum around the net. The Stars successfully challenged goalie interference and the goal was nullified.

Here are three takeaways from the game:

1. Numbers can be deceiving.

Looking at the stat line, one would think it was the Hurricanes with the upper hand. Carolina outshot the Stars 34-23, and had a whopping 95-43 advantage in shot attempts. They also led in quality shots 29-25.

The Stars' defense, which has had its ups and downs this season, tightened up, blocking 32 shots to Carolina's 13. They also had the advantage in hits (30-24).

"We just stuck to what our game plan was coming into it," Robertson said. "Everybody bought in and we were just trying to slow them down as much as we could. I thought we did a pretty good job of breaking the puck out. Every line contributed tonight."

2. Ty Dellandrea showed promise.

The Stars received disturbing news earlier this week that forward Evgenii Dadonov would miss 4-6 weeks after suffering a fracture during Saturday's game in Montreal. This allowed Ty Dellandrea to see more action.

Dellandrea has played just 24 games this season, with one goal and three assists for a -9. In 133 career games, he has four points (1-3-4) for a -1.

Tuesday's game against the Hurricanes was a chance for Dellandrea to gain confidence and prolong the need for a call-up from their AHL affiliate in Cedar Park.

While he didn't score a goal, Dellandrea had at least five high-quality chances to score, and he led the team with six shots on goal. One bounced off Kochetkov's mask midway through the second period. He had another opportunity on a mini-breakaway in the third period, but was denied by Kochetkov. Dellandrea also missed a chance for an open net goal with 45 seconds left.

Dellandrea helped the Stars' penalty-kill unit go 1-for-1 and matched the intensity of the team. If he continues to get more quality looks, the goals will come.

3. Otter was on again.

It may seem like a broken record, but it's becoming difficult to talk about a Stars game without mentioning goalie Jake Oettinger, who once again showed why he was voted to his first All-Star team.

With Dallas leading 3-2, the Canes' Brett Pesce had a wide open net, only to have Oettinger make the save of the night.

"Big, huge save," Stars coach Pete DeBoer told reporters after the game. "We need Jake to do that for us and (Scott Wedgewood) down the stretch. If you're going to go anywhere, you need those big, timely saves. You're gonna have breakdowns and good teams are going to expose you at different times. It's just the way hockey is."

Oettinger stopped 32 of 35 shots and is now 6-0-0 in his last six games. He's now 19-9-2 for the season with a 2.90 goals-against average and .906 save percentage.

The Stars played the ultimate team game, with four different players scoring goals. Their defense and situational play looked solid, and they matched Carolina's speed and intensity for most of the game.

They'll need more of those team efforts, as the schedule only gets tougher from here. Dallas travels to Nashville to face the Predators Thursday before coming back home for a Saturday matinee against the Edmonton Oilers.

Make sure you bookmark THN's Dallas Stars site for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns, and so much more.

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