(@DallasStars/X)
In the first game back after the All-Star break, Jake Oettinger showed why he was a 2024 All-Star.
The Dallas Stars defeated the Buffalo Sabres 2-1 at KeyBank Center in Buffalo, New York. With the win, Dallas improved to 31-13-6 and improved its winning streak to four games.
In his past four starts in goal before the All-Star break, Oettinger allowed in 16 goals and finished with a 3.04 GAA heading into the All-Star game.
Dallas took a 1-0 lead 3:58 into the game from a Matt Duchene powerplay goal as Oettinger made 16 saves in the period. Tage Thompson scored a powerplay goal for Buffalo at 5:53 in the second period to tie the game, but Sam Steel scored at 9:04 to give Dallas a 2-1 lead. Oettinger made 15 saves in the second period.
In the third period, Oettinger stopped all 16 Buffalo shots on goal and finished with a career-high 47 saves.
Dallas went 0-of-4 on the powerplay in the third period, but finished with 18 shots on goal against Buffalo’s goaltender Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen after having 12 shots on goal through the first two periods. Luukkonen and the Sabres fell to 22-24-4.
The Stars will meet the Sabres for the final time this season in Dallas on April 9.
On a milestone note, Joe Pavelski has now played in 1,300 career games.
For the Central Division standings watch, the Winnipeg Jets fell to the Pittsburgh Penguins 3-0 and the Colorado Avalanche fell to the New Jersey Devils 5-3. With the Avalanche loss, the Stars are now in first place in the Central Division. Both Colorado and Dallas each have 68 points and Dallas has played one less game than Colorado.
Winnipeg is in third place with 65 points with two less games played than Dallas and three less than Colorado. The Jets have now lost four consecutive games.
The Stars will be back in action tomorrow night at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, to play the Toronto Maple Leafs. Puck drop is scheduled for 6 p.m. CT.
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