The Dallas Stars continued the homestand with a home game versus the New Jersey Devils. The Stars quickly scored to get on the board but allowed five unanswered goals and ultimately lost 6-2 to the Devils at the American Airlines Center on Thursday night. Dallas fell to 40-19-9, while New Jersey improved to 32-30-4.
Jake Allen made his New Jersey Devils debut on Thursday. Allen made a whopping 35 saves for a hard-fought win.
The Stars’ starting lineup featured Miro Heiskanen, Wyatt Johnston, Logan Stankoven, Thomas Harley, Jamie Benn, and Jake Oettinger. After Timo Meier’s second-period goal, Dallas pulled Jake Oettinger, who made just six saves in 23:52 of ice time, in favor of Scott Wedgewood. Wedgewood made eight saves in relief of Oettinger.
The Stars wasted no time getting on the board first. Wyatt Johnston blasted a snap shot past Jake Allen for a quick 1-0 lead 15 seconds into the opening period. Jamie Benn and Thomas Harley collected the assists on Johnston’s 25th of the season.
The Devils tied the game. Erik Haula fired a wrist shot into the Stars’ net to tie the game 1-1 at 5:41. Haula’s unassisted goal was his 14th of the season.
The Stars regained the lead. Craig Smith fired a wrist shot into the Devils’ net for a 2-1 lead at 12:04. Jani Hakanpää and Ty Dellandrea collected the assists on Smith’s eighth of the season.
The Devils tied the game again. Chris Tierney fired a wrist shot past Jake Oettinger to tie the game 2-2 at 17:14. Kurtis MacDermid and Nick DeSimone collected the assists on Tierney’s second of the season.
The Stars and Devils were tied 2-2 at the end of the first period. Dallas outshot New Jersey 7-6 after the opening 20 minutes.
The Devils opened second-period scoring and quickly took the lead. Dawson Mercer fired a wrist shot into the Stars’ net to give the Devils a 3-2 lead at 1:31. Nico Hischier and Luke Hughes collected the assists on Mercer’s 17th of the season.
The Devils took a two-goal lead. Timo Meier fired a wrist shot past Scott Wedgewood for a 4-2 lead at 3:52. Jesper Bratt and Simon Nemec collected the assists on Meier’s 19th of the season.
The Devils took a three-goal lead. Tomas Nosek fired a wrist shot that went past the Stars’ net to make it a 5-2 game at 5:12. Curtis Lazar collected the lone assist on Nosek’s first of the season.
The Stars trailed the Devils 5-2 at the end of two periods. Dallas outshot New Jersey 22-14 through 40 minutes.
The Stars had 1:23 left on the power play after Kevin Bahl was called for cross-checking against Craig Smith at 19:23 of the second period. Dallas, however, couldn’t capitalize on the man advantage early in the third period, and the game reverted to full strength.
Despite a large shot advantage, Dallas couldn’t outwork or shut down New Jersey. The Devils put the game out of reach late in the third period. Alexander Holtz blasted a snap shot into the Stars’ net to extend the Devils’ lead to 6-2 at 14:25. Chris Tierney and Timo Meier collected the assists on Holtz’s 14th of the season.
The Stars took an early lead, only to lose 6-2 to the Devils in regulation. Dallas outshot New Jersey 37-20 after a full 60 minutes. Dallas lost back-to-back games for just the fourth time this season.
Notes
Three Stars of the Game
1. Jake Allen (2.00 GAA and .946 SV%)
2. Chris Tierney (2 points: 1 goal and 1 assist)
3. Timo Meier (2 points: 1 goal and 1 assist)
First Time
Logan Stankoven and Chris Tanev played in their first-ever Blackout night on Thursday night.
Up Next
The Stars will welcome the Los Angeles Kings to the AAC on Saturday at 7:00 p.m. Central.
ITR 40: Headed For A Repeat? – Inside The Rink
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