Despite a hot start and elite performance by the power play, the Dallas Stars couldn’t hold onto a lead once again.
The Stars fell 7-5 to the Anaheim Ducks in a high-scoring affair at American Airlines Center on Thursday after a crushing second period where the Ducks outscored the Stars 4-1. The loss snapped a seven-game points streak for the Stars dating back to Oct. 23.
“The damage was done in the second,” Stars head coach Glen Gulutzan said. “Going into the third is big in this league, if you’re leading going into the third, you look at the percentages, you’ve got a very good chance to win. And we didn’t do that in the second.”
The Stars have been outscored 35-30 in second and third periods this season while tying opponents 9-9 in the first.
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In the Stars’ recent stretch of games, however, it had been the opposite situation. Before Thursday, the Stars had sacrificed the first goal in eight of their last nine games. But they overcame that trend when Wyatt Johnston scored twice on the power play in the first frame.
Anaheim came out hot in the second period, scoring two goals in the first 2:48, including one on the power play to tie the game up.
Tyler Seguin regained the lead for the Stars midway through the period, scoring his first regular-season goal against the Ducks in 30 career matchups.
But the Ducks scored another two goals in the middle frame, including a second on the power play. Dallas’ penalty kill, which has been so consistent in recent years, ranks 25th in the NHL at just 71.8% this season.
Both in 5-on-5 and the penalty kill, the Stars did not protect well against the Ducks’ rush. All four of Anaheim’s second-period goals came in transition.
“Our game plan against a very good rush team was to limit the amount of rushes, and then we started extending our shifts and turning pucks over, so our second buried us,” Gulutzan said.
The Ducks added a fifth goal just 16 seconds into the third period, Chris Kreider’s second of the day.
Mikko Rantanen extended his goal streak to three games, scoring on a Stars’ third-period power play. The Stars’ power play finished 3 for 5 on the day, and Dallas now has 12 power-play goals in the last eight games.
But Dallas’ power play made the ultimate mistake, sacrificing a shorthanded goal to Leo Carlsson in the third period when the Stars had the chance to tie the game.
Roope Hintz, returning to the lineup after missing the last five games, added one last goal for the Stars late in the third period. But with just over three minutes to play, Dallas couldn’t find the equalizer to force overtime. Anaheim iced the game with an empty netter. Seven goals is the most the Stars have allowed in a game this season.
“I think we’ve been searching a little bit, especially for 5-on-5 offense, but one thing we’ve been proud of is we have been pretty stingy defensively, so that’s the disappointment from tonight,” Seguin said.
Rantanen, Johnston, Jason Robertson and Miro Heiskanen all finished with multiple points.
It wasn’t Jake Oettinger’s best night, as the goaltender allowed six goals on 23 shots in his first game back since paternity leave.
In addition to Hintz, the Stars also returned Radek Faksa to the lineup, who missed Tuesday’s game against Edmonton with an illness. But the Stars couldn’t capitalize on having a healthier lineup than they’ve had in weeks.
The Ducks haven’t qualified for the playoffs since 2017, but leading the Pacific Division, Anaheim looks far improved and poised for their best season in nearly a decade.
The schedule doesn’t get any easier for Dallas, which plays three games in four days and a back-to-back this weekend on the road at Nashville on Saturday and at home against Seattle on Sunday.
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