Stars beat Jets 5-4 in chaotic season opener – Hockey Writer – Dallas Stars
The Dallas Stars defeated the Winnipeg Jets 5-4 in an early playoff rematch. The two teams combined for seven goals in the third period, making it a wild night from start to finish.
Mikko Rantanen, Niels Lundkvist, Jason Robertson, Tyler Seguin and Wyatt Johnston scored for the Stars. Jake Oettinger had 21 saves on 25 shots.
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Newly re-signed Kyle Connor scored three goals for the Jets, while Morgan Barron added the other. Connor Helleback made 32 saves on 37 shots.
game review
The Stars got on the board early in the first period, with Rantanen clearing a loose puck in front of the net at 3:15.
Just over three minutes later, Connor took a pass from Mark Scheifele and shot the puck under Oettinger’s left arm to tie the score at 1-1.
At 15 minutes and 24 seconds, Lundkqvist’s shot hit the goal post, and Rantanen made a beautiful pass from the bottom of the left face-off circle, giving the Stars a one-goal lead.
After a scoreless second period, Robertson scored a power-play goal with 1:01 left in the third period to give the Stars a 3-1 lead. Rantanen continued his productive night with a pass from the right corner, and Robertson was left alone in front of Hellebuyck, who made his first save on the ball on his right pad but couldn’t stop the rebound.
34 seconds later, Du Xing hit a beautiful spinning ball in the neutral zone, found Seguin and shot at the back post to make the score 4-1.
Johnston continued his onslaught with a wrist shot that hit the glove side of Hellebuyck.
With the Stars on fire, the Jets scored two shorthanded goals to extend their lead to 5-3 with less than eight minutes left in the game. Barron first broke up a pass that went coast-to-coast, beating Oettinger with a backhand shot over the left pad. Next, Conner scored his second goal of the night after Scheifele passed the ball to Conner from the defensive zone. After Oettinger stopped the first attempt, Conner picked up the rebound and put the puck into an open net.
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At 16 minutes and 57 seconds, Connor scored a hat trick and the Jets took a step closer.
The Stars scored a late penalty kick and won 5-4.
The Stars outshot the Jets 37-25 and went 1-for-5 on the power play while the Jets went 0-for-4 on the man advantage.
Next
Both teams return to action on Saturday, with the Jets hosting the Los Angeles Kings and the Stars taking on the Colorado Avalanche in Denver.
