Dallas will have to wait at least one more game before celebrating a division title after Thursday's loss to Winnipeg.
Dallas will have to wait at least one more game before celebrating a division title after Thursday's loss to Winnipeg.
The Dallas Stars have been one of the hottest teams in the NHL down the stretch, going 10-1 in their last 11 games. But even the hottest team can be tripped up, often at the most inconvenient time.
The Stars learned that lesson Thursday night in a 3-0 loss at home to the Winnipeg Jets, a team they had beaten in their previous three meetings this season. A win would have given them their first Central Division title since 2015-16 and put them in a better position to win both the Western Conference and President's Trophy.
The Jets looked like a team on a mission, even though their ticket to the playoffs had already been punched. They still had a chance to pull into second place ahead of the Colorado Avalanche and secure home-ice advantage in their first-round series.
"They were the more desperate team," Stars coach Pete DeBoer said after the game. "We didn't give them a lot, either, but you have to score in this league to win, and it was one of the few nights we didn't do enough to score."
It wasn't the Stars' worst game of the season, but they looked a bit out of sync most of the night. They had their chances, including a 2-on-0 breakaway by Logan Stankoven and Wyatt Johnston that ended when Jets defenseman Dylan Samberg blocked the second shot attempt and dislodged the net. The play resulted in a Winnipeg penalty, but the Stars' power play was unable to convert.
Jets goalie Laurent Brossoit, who was 2-0-1 against Dallas over his career, made coach Rick Bowness look like a genius by starting him instead of Vezina Trophy candidate Connor Hellebuyck. Brossoit stopped 24 shots, but he also had some good fortune. Late in the second period, a shot by Thomas Harley deflected off a pair of skates, bounced off a post and ended up underneath Brossoit.
Even Winnipeg's first two goals came off a rebound and a deflection. Nikolaj Ehlers knocked in a rebound from the slot in the first period to give the Jets a 1-0 lead. David Gustafsson deflected Samberg's shot from inside the blue line in the second period for a 2-0 advantage.
"Two pucks toward the net that ended up in a little bit of chaos in front," DeBoer said. "They both kind of ended up on their sticks at the right moment. I didn't think Jake (Oettinger) could have done anything on either of them. That's playoff hockey; you've got to get pucks and bodies to the net. We've been pretty good at that all year, but I didn't think we did enough of that tonight."
Winnipeg's victory put them in second place ahead of the Avalanche. While both clubs have the same number of points, the Jets currently hold the tiebreaker of more regular season wins.
For Dallas, the loss is a reminder of what can happen in the postseason. Dominating a team during the regular season is no guarantee that trend will continue in a playoff series. It's also a good test of the Stars' ability to bounce back the next game and clinch the division, similar to recovering after a loss in a playoff series.
"That's the best part about hockey," Stars captain Jamie Benn said. "As good as you are, there's always things you can improve on. We'll learn from this one, take some positives from it and learn from our mistakes if we can."
With two regular season games remaining, the window for Dallas to determine its own destiny is closing. They can break out the champagne as early as this Saturday when they host the Seattle Kraken.
"You don't feel good, period, about losing," forward Tyler Seguin said. "I'm sure we'll look at some video (Friday) and move on."
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