When the Toronto Maple Leafs made their way to Dallas for their most recent showdown against the Dallas Stars, they were riding high on their six game win streak and looking to expand on it on the slumping Stars. Instead of making that a seven game win streak, they turned it into seven goals against as the Stars burst out of their slump in a flurry of high speed and incredible hockey, looking better than they have all season.
The game started well as Jamie Benn drew first blood for the Stars with the 100th goal of his career just seven minutes into the first period. That goal was quickly answered by the Leafs on the next play by Nikolai Kulemin. However, that didn’t slow down the Stars who continued to play fast and put on the pressure. Their efforts paid off when Cody “Agent Orange” Eakin sent the puck into Toronto’s net, elevating the score to a 2-1 lead for the Dallas Stars. The pressure continued into the intermission with the Stars retaining their lead as they headed to the dressing room.
The Stars were looking to raise their lead as they headed into the second period and they did just that. The first goal of the period came at the 6:36 mark when Jamie Benn sent the puck into towards the net. It was initially thought that Tyler Seguin tipped the goal in, but it was decided upon review that he did not touch the puck, leading to the goal then being credited to Jamie Benn. Upon further review, the goal ended up being credited to Val Nichushkin with assists from Jamie Benn and Sergei Gonchar. Just minutes later Shawn Horcoff put the puck in the net while on the powerplay, extending the lead to 4-1. The beating continued with two more goals from Rich Peverley and Trevor Daley, ending the period with a 6-1 lead for the Stars.
Dallas came into the third period looking to merely close out the game and defend their already huge lead, something they’ve managed to improve on throughout the season thanks to Lindy Ruff. Despite mainly focusing on defending, the Stars managed yet another goal, the second of the night from 18 year-old Val Nichushkin, his tenth of his career. The goal was assisted by Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin, bringing Benn’s point total for the night to four and Nichushkin’s to three. The rest of the period went on with the Stars not allowing the Leafs too much room to breath and closing out the game with a final score of 7-1.
(Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
This big win comes off of a 4-0 shutout win against the Minnesota Wild on Tuesday. Coach Lindy Ruff has been making many changed to the lines throughout the last week or so, looking to change things up and get the Stars winning again, which appears to have worked so far, with two straight wins. The Stars are going to be facing a tough challenge tomorrow night when they take on the Pittsburgh Penguins, a game that is sure to be an exciting matchup.
Brendon Carlton
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