The Dallas Stars concluded their two-game road trip with a brief visit to the Mile High City to take on the Colorado Avalanche. The Stars beat the Avalanche 7-4 at Ball Arena on Sunday. Dallas improved to 49-20-9, while Colorado fell to 48-24-6.
The Stars’ starting lineup featured Miro Heiskanen, Roope Hintz, Joe Pavelski, Thomas Harley, Jason Robertson, and Jake Oettinger. Oettinger made 34 saves for a win. Meanwhile, Avalanche goalie Alexandar Georgiev made 30 saves in a losing effort.
The Avalanche struck first at home. Sean Walker blasted a snap shot into the Stars’ net for an early 1-0 lead just 1:59 into the opening period. Brandon Duhaime and Ross Colton collected the assists on Walker’s tenth of the season.
The Stars evened the score with a game-tying goal. Matt Duchene, a former Colorado Avalanche forward from 2009 to 2018, fired a wrist shot into the Avalanche’s net to tie the game 1-1 at 17:11 of the first period. Chris Tanev collected the lone assist on Duchene’s 25th of the season.
Stars captain Jamie Benn put a shot into the Avalanche’s net to put the road team up 2-1 at 19:17 of the first period. Esa Lindell and Wyatt Johnston collected the assists on Benn’s 21st of the season.
The Stars led the Avalanche 2-1 at the end of the first period. Dallas outshot Colorado 13-11 after 20 minutes.
After a power play, Colorado tied the game with an equalizer. Ryan Suter was called for slashing against Casey Mittelstadt at 3:44 of the second period. Artturi Lehkonen blasted a snap shot into the Stars’ net for a power-play goal that evened the score 2-2 at 4:38. Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar collected the assists on Lehkonen’s 15th of the season.
After a power play, Dallas responded with a go-ahead goal. Sean Walker was called for high-sticking against Jamie Benn and was penalized with a double-minor. Roope Hintz tipped in a shot to put the Stars up 3-2 at 11:25 of the second period. Joe Pavelski and Thomas Harley collected the assists on Hintz’s 30th of the season.
The Stars doubled their power-play success on Sean Walker’s double-minor. Tyler Seguin fired a wrist shot into the Avalanche’s net to make it a 4-2 game at 12:45 of the second period. Matt Duchene and Thomas Harley collected the assists on Seguin’s 24th of the season.
The Stars set the bar high for the Avalanche. Cale Makar was called for slashing against Jamie Benn at 15:34 of the second period. Mason Marchment used a backhand shot to score a power-play goal and extend the Stars’ lead to 5-2 at 17:10. Thomas Harley and Wyatt Johnston collected the assists on Marchment’s 21st of the season.
The Avalanche had the last word in the second-period scoring. Brandon Duhaime scored his first goal as a Colorado Avalanche forward on a backhand shot at 19:15 of the second period. Nathan MacKinnon and Casey Mittelstadt collected the assists on Duhaime’s fifth of the season.
The Stars brought a 5-3 lead to the locker room at the end of two periods. Dallas outshot Colorado 29-25 through 40 minutes.
The Avalanche made it a one-goal game. Jonathan Drouin tipped in a shot past Stars goalie Jake Oettinger to cut the Stars’ lead to 5-4 at 10:15 of the third period. Devon Toews collected the lone assist on Drouin’s 19th of the season.
The Stars added an insurance goal. Wyatt Johnston scored on a poke shot to extend the Stars’ lead to 6-4 at 15:12 of the third period. Logan Stankoven and Jamie Benn collected the assists on Johnston’s 31st of the season.
The Avalanche pulled their goalie for an extra attacker. The Stars sealed the game’s scoring with an empty-net goal. Tyler Seguin fired a wrist shot into the Avalanche’s empty net to make it a 7-4 game at 19:51 of the third period. Jamie Benn collected the lone assist on Seguin’s 25th of the season.
The Stars beat the Avalanche 7-4 in regulation. Colorado outshot Dallas 40-37 after a full 60 minutes.
Notes
Injury Update
Esa Lindell sustained a lower-body injury and was questionable to return after Sunday night’s game, according to the Dallas Stars’ Twitter.
Cheers to 600
Esa Lindell played in his 600th NHL game on Sunday night.
Recent Transaction
The Dallas Stars loaned forward Mavrik Bourque to the Texas Stars on Sunday.
Bourque made his NHL debut with the Dallas Stars on Saturday against the Chicago Blackhawks, recording two shots in 10:56 minutes of ice time. The 22-year-old has appeared in 66 games with the Texas Stars this season, leading all AHL skaters with 72 points. Bourque also leads Texas and shares second in the league with 46 assists, and he ranks second on the club and shares 11th in the league with 26 goals. With Matěj Blümel and Logan Stankoven, Bourque represented the Central Division at the 2024 AHL All-Star Classic in San Jose.
The Plessisville, Quebec native appeared in 142 games with Texas over three seasons and recorded 124 points. His AHL debut was on May 6, 2021, where he recorded five points in six games with Texas in 2020-21. He played his first full professional season in 2022-23, earning 47 points in 70 regular-season games and adding four points in eight Calder Cup Playoff games.
The 5-foot-10, 191-pound forward was originally selected 30th overall by the Dallas Stars in the first round of the 2020 NHL Draft.
Up Next
The Stars will host the Buffalo Sabres at the American Airlines Center on Tuesday at 7:00 p.m. Central.
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