Photo Credit : Neville E. Guard / USA TODAY Sports
In the final matchup of the season between Dallas and San Jose, the Stars doubled down on the Sharks, winning 6-3 in the team’s fifth straight victory.
The win puts the Stars atop the Central Division and the Western Conference for the time being and has the organization just one point behind the league-leading New York Rangers.
Dallas headed to the penalty box just five minutes into the first period when Stars left winger Mason Marchment was called for holding San Jose defenseman Henry Thrun, but the Stars killed the penalty.
Halfway through the period, Dallas defenseman Esa Lindell headed to the penalty box for slashing San Jose’s Nico Sturm. With 13 seconds left in the San Jose power play, Stars captain Jamie Benn intercepted a pass in the Stars zone, tipping it ahead to Wyatt Johnston. Johnston launched out of the Stars zone and flew through neutral ice, into the Sharks zone and directly in front of San Jose goaltender Mackenzie Blackwood before taking a shot that slipped past the goalie’s glove and into the net, giving the Stars the first lead of the game.
With 3:32 remaining in the period, Dallas’ Sam Steel recovered a rebound off Dallas goaltender Scott Wedgewood and sent the puck to Marchment. Marchment skated the puck through neutral ice and into the Sharks zone, juking and dekeing defenders the whole way, before skating directly to the net and taking a shot that sailed up and over the left shoulder of Blackwood, putting the Stars up 2-0.
Marchment’s goal made him the seventh member of the Stars roster to score 20 or more goals this season: It’s the first time the feat has been accomplished in franchise history.
Fourteen seconds into the second period, Jason Robertson took control of the puck at the Sharks blue line after intercepting an attempt to clear the puck from the zone. Robertson skated the puck back into Sharks territory and took a shot from the right faceoff circle that went low and through the legs of Blackwood, giving the Stars a 3-0 lead.
Any hope for a Stars shutout was crushed just 40 seconds later, though. Sharks left winger William Eklund took control of the puck behind the Stars net before backhand passing it to Alexander Barabanov, who had posted up immediately to Wedgewood’s left. Barabanov grabbed the puck, elevated it and slammed it over the right shoulder of Wedgewood, putting the Sharks on the board 3-1.
The Sharks tightened the score on the Stars a minute later when Stars center Sam Steel headed to the penalty box for holding San Jose’s Filip Zadina. Just seven seconds into the power play, San Jose’s Thomas Bordeleau passed the puck from the right faceoff circle across the Stars zone to Ecklund, who sent a slapshot flying into the net behind Wedgewood, bringing the Sharks within a goal of the Stars.
Five minutes later, Dallas’ Ty Dellandrea and San Jose’s Luke Kunin met at center ice for a scrap, landing them both in the box for five minutes for fighting.
Dallas’ offense was far from finished for the night, though, and with 11:55 remaining in the period, Stars captain Jamie Benn regained the two-goal lead for the Stars. Johnston gained control of the puck behind the Sharks net before sending it to Benn in front of the net. The puck collided with Thrun, sending it into the air before Benn swung backhanded at the puck, sending into the net.
The lead was short lived though, with San Jose’s Klim Kostin notching another goal on the board for the Sharks just 53 seconds later. San Jose’s Mikael Granlund took control of the puck in neutral ice and skated it into the Stars zone before dropping it behind him to Kostin, who shot from the middle of the right faceoff circle and sent the puck over the left shoulder of Wedgewood, closing the point gap to 4-3.
But the lead would be recovered just a minute and a half later. Johnston skated the puck through the neutral zone before passing it to Benn, who had posted up on the blue line. As the two entered the zone, Benn sent the puck back to Johnston who skated to the front of the net and took a backhand shot that lifted the puck up and over the right leg of Blackwood.
With 9:37 remaining in the period, Dallas headed to the power play again when San Jose’s Thomas Bordeleau was called for holding Dallas’ Matt Duchene, but the Sharks killed off the man advantage.
The third period was a show of special teams with both sides taking and killing penalties.
Four minutes into the period, Dallas defenseman Chris Tanev headed to the box for tripping Kostin, but the Stars killed the power play.
Dallas went on the man advantage two and a half minutes later when Sharks defenseman Kyle Burroughs went to the box for tripping Duchene, but the Sharks held the Stars off.
Halfway through the period, San Jose defenseman Mario Ferraro headed to the penalty box for holding Dellandrea, and just 40 seconds into the power play, the Stars regained the night’s earlier three-goal lead.
Dallas defenseman Miro Heiskanen controlled the puck at the Sharks blue line before passing to Robertson at the top of the left faceoff circle. Robertston took a couple strides further into the zone and took a shot, sending the puck soaring through the zone and into the net behind Blackwood, notching the final goal in the team’s 6-3 victory.
The Stars take on the Western Conference-leading Vancouver Canucks on Thursday at Rogers Arena in Vancouver. Puck drop is scheduled for 9 p.m. CST.
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