The Dallas Stars started the week with back-to-back games, one at home versus the New York Islanders and the other on the road against the Colorado Avalanche. Here’s my Dallas Stars Back-to-Back Recap for February 26th and 27th, respectively.
Monday, February 26
The Stars hosted the New York Islanders on Monday night, hoping for a win in Logan Stankoven’s home debut on his 21st birthday. Unfortunately, the Stars fell to the Islanders, 3-2, in overtime at the American Airlines Center. Dallas fell to 35-16-9, while New York improved to 24-20-14.
Islanders starting goalie Ilya Sorokin made 30 saves for a win.
The Stars’ starting lineup featured Radek Faksa, Ryan Suter, Craig Smith, Esa Lindell, Sam Steel, and Scott Wedgewood. Wedgewood made 25 saves in a losing effort.
The Stars seemingly focused on getting shots into the net for a goal or two, but the Stars’ efforts didn’t lead to goals. The Islanders got on the board first when Ryan Pulock snapped home a shot for a 1-0 lead at 15:59. Simon Holmstrom and Casey Cizikas collected the assists on Pulock’s fourth of the season.
The first period ended with a late penalty after Miro Heiskanen was called for holding against Anders Lee at 19:52. Additionally, 1:52 of the Heiskanen penalty rolled over into the second period, which the Stars killed successfully.
The Stars trailed the Islanders 1-0 at the end of the first period. Dallas outshot New York 13-10 after 20 minutes.
The Stars finally got on the board to open the second-period scoring and tie the game at one apiece. Ryan Pulock was called for interference against Logan Stankoven at 5:21. Matt Duchene capitalized on the man advantage and blasted a snap shot past Ilya Sorokin to even the score 1-1 at 7:11. Thomas Harley and (Logan) Stankoven collected the assists on Duchene’s 23rd of the season. In addition, Duchene recorded his 800th career NHL point with his game-tying goal.
The Islanders regained the lead late in the second period. Kyle MacLean ripped a slap shot into the Stars’ net to put the Islanders up 2-1 at 15:24. Pierre Engvall and Ryan Pulock collected the assists on MacLean’s second of the season.
But the Islanders’ lead was short-lived as Logan Stankoven scored his first NHL goal on a wrist shot to tie the game 2-2 at 18:17. Wyatt Johnston collected the lone assist on Stankoven’s first of the season.
The Stars and Islanders were tied 2-2 at the end of two periods. New York outshot Dallas 23-22 through 40 minutes.
Neither the Stars nor the Islanders scored in the third period. Dallas outshot New York 31-27 after a full 60 minutes.
The game went into overtime, but Brock Nelson ended the Stars’ hopes with a snap shot for the game-winner at 2:54. The Stars fell to the Islanders 3-2 in overtime and picked up a point. Dallas outshot New York 32-28 after about 63 minutes.
Tuesday, February 27
The Stars were in Denver to take on the Colorado Avalanche on Tuesday night. Unexpectedly, Logan Stankoven’s family attended his third NHL game due to bad weather and canceled connecting flights en route to British Columbia. The Stars got on the board first but lost to the Avalanche 5-1 at Ball Arena. Dallas fell to 35-17-9, while Colorado improved to 36-19-5.
Avalanche starting goalie Alexandar Georgiev made 34 saves, including a last-second save that sparked a fight, for a hard-fought win.
The Stars’ starting lineup featured Miro Heiskanen, Roope Hintz, Joe Pavelski, Thomas Harley, Jason Robertson, and Jake Oettinger. Oettinger made 22 saves, despite the Stars’ tough loss.
The Stars wasted no time getting on the board in the first period. Logan Stankoven blasted a snap shot into the Avalanche’s net for an early 1-0 lead at 1:00. Wyatt Johnston collected the lone assist on Stankoven’s second of the season.
But the Avalanche quickly responded and took a one-goal lead to shake up the first period. Joel Kiviranta, a former Dallas Star, fired a snap shot into the Stars’ net to tie the game 1-1 at 2:08. Andrew Cogliano, also a former Dallas Star, and Devon Toews collected the assists on Kiviranta’s third of the season. Mikko Rantanen then scored on a backhand shot to give the Avalanche a 2-1 lead at 5:58. Nathan MacKinnon collected the lone assist on Rantanen’s 31st of the season.
The Stars got a power play late in the first period. Bowen Byram was called for tripping against Ty Dellandrea at 19:28. One minute and 28 seconds of the Stars’ power play rolled over into the second period, but the Stars couldn’t capitalize on the man advantage.
The Stars trailed the Avalanche 2-1 at the end of the first period. Colorado outshot Dallas 15-11 after 20 minutes.
The Avalanche took a two-goal lead to open the second-period scoring. Andrew Cogliano’s wrist shot found the back of the Stars’ net to make it a 3-1 game at 7:09. Chris Wagner collected the lone assist on Cogliano’s sixth of the season.
The Avalanche made it a wide-open lead nearly midway through the second period. Nathan MacKinnon’s backhand shot went into the Stars’ net and gave the Avalanche a 4-1 lead at 7:58. Artturi Lehkonen and Cale Maker collected the assists on MacKinnon’s 35th of the season.
The Stars suffered a costly penalty after Wyatt Johnston was called for delaying the game with a puck over the glass at 13:20. As a result, Colorado went on the power play. Arturri Lehkonen capitalized on the man advantage and tipped in a shot for a power-play goal and a 5-1 lead at 14:15. Jonathan Drouin and Mikko Rantanen collected the assists on Lehkonen’s ninth of the season.
The Stars were down 5-1 at the end of two periods. Dallas outshot Colorado 25-21 through 40 minutes.
Neither the Stars nor the Avalanche scored in the third period. The Stars lost to the Avalanche 5-1 in regulation. Dallas outshot Colorado 34-27 after a full 60 minutes.
Up Next
The Stars will return home to the Metroplex to host the Winnipeg Jets on Thursday at 7:00 p.m. Central.
