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Seguin scores twice as Stars blitz Avalanche in Denver 7-2

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It had been one year since the Dallas Stars have won a game against the Colorado Avalanche at the Pepsi Center. The four game win streak improved to five, and the Stars exorcised some personal demons as they bested the Avalanche 7-2. Colorado was without notable Stars killers Matt Duchene, who now plays for the Ottawa Senators, and captain Gabriel Landeskog who is serving a suspension. Impressively for the Stars, the win came on the second night of a back-to-back after an emotional win against the Chicago Blackhawks and a full night of travel to the Mile High City. The Stars are undefeated since donning the yellow laces in made famous by Stars legend Jere Lehtinen.

The Stars received contributions from all over the lineup. The reunited top line for the Stars had shown flashes in the last couple of games but came up with some big production in this one thanks to two goals from Tyler Seguin. Alexander Radulov chipped in with two assists and a major mugging of Seguin after his first goal. Jamie Benn, who has been held without a goal in the last six games, picked up an assist on Greg Pateryn’s first goal of the season that caused Colorado to pull Jonathan Bernier in favor of Semyon Varlamov.

Jason Spezza also improved upon his disappointing season by notching his fourth goal on a setup from Devin Shore. Shore also picked up a shorthanded goal into an empty net as the Stars were on the penalty kill near the end of the game. Curtis McKenzie, playing in his second NHL game of the year, made a huge play on the forecheck to help Brett Ritchie score his second goal of the season and draw the curtains on any designs Colorado had of making a push. Ritchie also tallied another late in the game off the rush to finish with two goals. Red hot Radek Faksa almost scored his sixth goal in four games, but the play was overturned on grounds of goaltender interference. He did pick up an assist on the second Ritchie goal.

The Avalanche were chasing the score all night but were able to gain some traction in the second period with goals from Mikko Rantanen and Blake Comeau. In a pleasant departure from recent outings, the Stars didn’t spend any time in the penalty box until late in the second period. They went 3-for-3 on the penalty kill in the game and 0-for4 on the power play. Kari Lehtonen had a solid outing after being out for a number of games due to the birth of his son and finished the night with 25 saves on 27 shots.

Play of the Game

Tyler Seguin’s first goal of the night was poetic in not only its finish, but also what it meant for a team that has had monumental struggles in the Pepsi Center. Seguin did all the work in intercepting the neutral zone pass, burning the back checking Matt Nieto, and handling the puck perfectly in front of Jonathan Bernier. The play brought the Stars bench to life, and they never looked back.

The Upset Three Stars of the Night

1. Tyler Seguin (2 G, 1 block) – Seguin scored the first two goals of the game and set the tone for the rest of the night.

2. Alexander Radulov (2 A) – The strong puck possession game that Radulov has become known for in Dallas bore its fruits as the Russian winger not only had helpers on important goals, but also fired up his team with his infectious energy.

3. Greg Pateryn (1 G, 4 blocks, TOI 20:00) – Pateryn scored his first goal of the season with a screaming one timer from the point, led all Dallas skaters in time on ice, and embodied the type of play that is critical to road victories.

The Goals

First Period

14:44 Tyler Seguin created a turnover in the neutral zone and got past the back checking Matt Nieto. He deked in front of Jonathan Bernier and finished with the back hand for his 13th goal of the season. Alexander Radulov came in at the end of the play to display his affection for Seguin. Stars 1, Avalanche 0

19:10 Tyler Seguin picked up his second goal of the game, and 14th of the season, via a doubly redirected shot from the point. Jamie Benn played catch with John Klingberg, who fired from the point. The puck bounced off of both Alexander Radulov and Seguin’s stick to beat Bernier and put the Stars up by two. Stars 2, Avalanche 1

Second Period

:39 In the first minute, the Stars turned the puck over in the offensive zone and Nathan MacKinnon started a rush. He found Mikko Rantanen on the left circle who beat Kari Lehtonen with a wrist shot glove side on the Avalanche’s 13th shot of the night. Stars 2, Avalanche 1

6:48 Devin Shore won a puck battle in the defensive zone with maximum effort and skill, sparked a rush, and threw the puck to the net. Jason Spezza was there to redirect the shot, notch his fourth goal in a disappointing season, and restore the Dallas lead to two. Stars 3, Avalanche 1

7:52 Greg Pateryn picked up his first goal of the season, and his first as a Dallas Star. Alexander Radulov skated behind the net with the puck, then threw it to the opposite wall. The puck softly angled perfectly towards Pateryn who buried the one timer and ended the night for Jonathan Bernier who was pulled for Semyon Varlamov. Stars 4, Avalanche 1

12:45 Tyson Barrie created a rebound on his shot from the point, and no one on the Stars picked up Blake Comeau. Comeau sneaked in the get the puck past Kari Lehtonen to pull the Avalanche within two on his sixth goal of the season. Stars 4, Avalanche 2

Third Period

4:02 Curtis McKenzie and Brett Ritchie put the screws to Alexander Kerfoot on the forecheck. Kerfoot attempted to clear his zone, but hit a crouching McKenzie who centered to Ritchie waiting near the back door. It was Ritchie’s second goal of the season. Stars 5, Avalanche 2

17:24 Devin Shore scored into the empty net while the Stars were only the penalty kill. He attempted a simple clearing attempt with the backhand that dribbled the puck slowly down ice into the net. Stars 6, Avalanche 2

18:10 Brett Ritchie scored his second goal of the night off a feed from Radek Faksa on the rush to put his team up by five. Stars 7, Avalanche 2

Avalanche lineup
J.T. Compher — Nathan MacKinnon — Mikko Rantanen
Tyson Jost — Alexander Kerfoot — Sven Andrighetto
Matt Nieto — Carl Soderberg — Blake Comeau
Gabriel Bourque — Dominic Toninato — Nail Yakupov

Samuel Girard — Erik Johnson
Nikita Zadorov — Mark Barberio
Anton Lindholm — Tyson Barrie

Jonathan Bernier
Semyon Varlamov

Injured: Patrick Nemeth (lower body), Vladislav Kaminev (broken arm)

Scratched: Duncan Siemens, Gabriel Landeskog, Colin Wilson

Stars lineup
Jamie Benn — Tyler Seguin — Alexander Radulov
Mattias Janmark — Jason Spezza — Devin Shore
Remi Elie — Radek Faksa — Tyler Pitlick
Curtis McKenzie — Gemel Smith — Brett Ritchie

Esa Lindell — John Klingberg
Dan Hamhuis — Greg Pateryn
Stephen Johns — Julius Honka

Kari Lehtonen
Ben Bishop

Injured: Marc Methot (knee), Martin Hanzal (hamstring), Antoine Roussel (illness)

Scratched: Jamie Oleksiak, Jason Dickinson

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