On the first game of their four game road trip through the Tri-State area, the Dallas Stars collected two points in the shootout against the New York Rangers winning 2-1. Ondrej Pavelec drew the start for the Rangers in lieu of future Hall of Fame goaltender Henrik Lundqvist, but you would never know it. Pavelec gave New York the game of his life, making 44 saves on 45 shots.
The Stars dominated the game in every statistical category expect goals. The game remained tied at zero at the first intermission thanks in large part to Pavelec. Though the Stars were bringing pressure from just about every area of the offensive zone and saw several quality chances from all four lines outshooting the competition 15-6, they continued their puzzling tradition of making backup goaltenders look better than advertised. Dallas’s power play remained abysmal going went 0-for-3 on the power play, even with 50 seconds of 5-on-3. The Stars did not spend any time in the penalty box.
For one night, the “Free Honka” movement was vindicated as the idea of Honka finally manifested into reality. Honka scored his first goal of the season in either the AHL or NHL on the 20th shot of the game for the Stars. Honka beat Pavelec in the high corner on a shot from the point, and Jamie Benn and Esa Lindell had the assists.
Kari Lehtonen got the nod in net for the Stars and only had to face 10 shots through the first two periods. He did make a spectacular save on a breakaway from J.T. Miller. Miller tried to deke in front of the net for the backhand chance, but Kari stuck out his leg at the perfect time to keep the Stars up by one. Lehtonen gave up the tying goal with a few minutes left in regulation as Rick Nash skated in front of him to get a piece of a point shot from Brady Skjei.
The performance from both goaltenders was monumental in the overtime frame. Both teams created odd man rushes and were thwarted. In the shootout, Alexander Radulov and Jason Spezza both bested Pavelec to seal the OT victory for the Stars.
Play of the Game
Kari Lehtonen was stone cold in the five minutes of overtime. The Rangers had their fair share of chances, but Lehtonen wasn’t leaving the MSG without two points. His throughout post-regulation was a work of art, and it would be criminal to narrow it down to a singular play.
The Upset Three Stars of the Game
1. Ondrej Pavelec (44 saves on 45 shots) – Pavelec deserved a better fate as he had a signature game that will be slated on the top of his resume. The Stars had their highest shot totals of the season, but Pavelec was strong until he ceded two shootout goals to Alexander Radulov and Jason Spezza.
2. Kari Lehtonen (24 saves on 25 shots) – The big Finn didn’t exactly have a busy night, but nonetheless turned in an impressive performance with a .960 SV%. His most notable save was the play of the game as he stopped J.T. Miller on a potential game-tying breakaway.
3. Julius Honka (1 G, 3 SOG) – Honka finally recorded a point for the season, scoring his first goal in either the AHL or NHL. He also played well in all three zones and made a solid bid to stay in the lineup.
The Goals
First Period
No goals
Second Period
6:30 Julius Honka picked up his first goal, and first overall point, of the season in dramatic fashion. Ondrej Pavelec was perfect in the game until Honka took the ice after a zone entry for the Stars, received the blue line pass from Esa Lindell, and fired a shot from the high slot that caught a high corner. Stars 1, Rangers 0
adding to the thread pic.twitter.com/aVkZDG96m6
— Dylan Nadwodny (@dnadders) December 12, 2017
Third Period
16:19 Rick Nash scored late in the game to tie the Stars at one. On a shot from the point, Nash got a piece of the puck on a screen in front of Kari Lehtonen as Lehtonen was too far out of the crease to have the goal overturned on a goaltender interference call. Stars 1, Rangers 1
Skjei with the wrist shot and it goes past Lehtonen. Nash with the screen and slight contact but it's a good goal. 1-1. pic.twitter.com/IKmnImzxVW
— Dylan Nadwodny (@dnadders) December 12, 2017
Overtime
No goals
Rangers lineup
Chris Kreider — David Desharnais — Pavel Buchnevich
Rick Nash — Kevin Hayes — Jesper Fast
Michael Grabner — J.T. Miller — Mats Zuccarello
Paul Carey — Boo Nieves — Jimmy Vesey
Ryan McDonagh — Nick Holden
Brady Skjei — Kevin Shattenkirk
Marc Staal — Brendan Smith
Ondrej Pavelec
Henrik Lundqvist
Scratched: Steven Kampfer
Injured: Mika Zibanejad (concussion)
Stars lineup
Mattias Janmark — Jason Spezza — Alexander Radulov
Jamie Benn — Radek Faksa — Tyler Pitlick
Remi Elie — Tyler Seguin — Devin Shore
Gemel Smith — Jason Dickinson — Brett Ritchie
Esa Lindell — John Klingberg
Dan Hamhuis — Greg Pateryn
Stephen Johns — Julius Honka
Kari Lehtonen
Ben Bishop
Scratched: Jamie Oleksiak
Injured: Marc Methot (knee), Martin Hanzal (hamstring), Antoine Roussel (elbow)
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