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 Center Ryan Garbutt led Dallas with three points (goal, two
assists), and the Stars also got a goal and an assist from center
Jamie Benn.
"I thought Ryan's play was excellent, he made some great plays,"
Stars coach Lindy Ruff said. "Obviously he's a difference maker,
he's an energy guy for us and it was nice to see him get rewarded
because that line has worked hard, he's worked real hard."
Dallas, which won for the first time in 2014, also got 31 saves from
goaltender Kari Lehtonen.
"Obviously it's been a grind, it was good to get it," Ruff said. "I
thought we came out great. A little lull in the second period, the
last half of the second I thought we played well. And then the third
we played it pretty smart."
The Stars (21-18-7) added an empty-net goal from defenseman Trevor
Daley with 39 seconds left.
Dallas took an early lead when left winger Erik Cole scored just 14
seconds into the game from the low slot. Cole slipped the puck into
an open net after Oilers goaltender Ilya Bryzgalov was preoccupied
with Daley, who fed the puck to Cole for his 12th of the season.
"Yeah, the first goal is a broken play," Oilers coach Dallas Eakins
said. "(Nugent-Hopkins) ends up falling down. I don't think it was a
case of we weren't ready to play. I thought we were."
Edmonton (15-29-5) answered at 3:40 of the opening period when
defenseman Justin Schultz beat Lehtonen with a backhand shot to make
it 1-1. Oilers left winger Taylor Hall got the primary assist with a
great cross-ice pass to Schultz, who cut in front of the Dallas goal
before beating Lehtonen at the far post.
Dallas regained the lead at 8:35 when Garbutt scored his ninth of
the season with a tap-in from inside the visiting crease. Dallas
left winger Ray Whitney skated around the back of the Oilers' net,
and after being denied by Bryzgalov, sent in a shot that deflected
off Bryzgalov's blocker and elbow before going into the crease.
Garbutt poked his stick into the scrum and knocked the puck in.
The Stars added a third goal of the period at 10:22 when Benn beat
Bryzgalov over his blocker with a wrister from the left circle with
the Stars on the power play. Dallas center Tyler Seguin picked up
the primary assist with a well-placed pass from near the Edmonton
blue line. Benn collected the puck and finished for his 16th of the
season.
[to top of second column] |
The Stars went on the power play after Oilers center Sam
Gagner was called for interference at 9:45 of the first.
The Stars continued their onslaught when Eakin scored his 10th
with a wrister into an open net 1:10 into the middle period.
Left winger Antoine Roussel dug the puck out of the corner and
spotted Eakin open at the far post, where he converted with
ease.
Edmonton pulled one back at 10:28 of the second when Gagner
tapped in a rebound for his sixth with the Oilers on the power
play. The Oilers also had a near-miss in the second when center
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins rang a wrister from the right circle off the
crossbar at 4:09.
Benn put the visitors on the power play with a tripping penalty
at 9:30 of the second.
The Oilers lost left wing Ales Hemsky late in the second period
and he did not return for the final 20 minutes.
"He took a heater in the ankle," Eakins said. "The early X-ray
doesn't show anything, but I think we're going to have to delve
a little deeper and get another look at it."
Hall finished with two assists for Edmonton and Bryzgalov
stopped 25 of 29 shots for the Oilers.
NOTES: LW Jesse Joensuu was the lone scratch for Edmonton. ...
Dallas scratched C Dustin Jeffrey and D Aaron Rome (lower body).
... Oilers G Ilya Bryzgalov was playing his first game in Dallas
since sustaining an upper-body injury in the second period of a
3-2 shootout win over the Stars on Dec. 1, 2013. Bryzgalov
stopped 28 of 29 shots before having to leave that game after
colliding with Dallas center Ryan Garbutt. Bryzgalov missed
Edmonton's next six games. ... Stars LW Ray Whitney was playing
his 1,300th career game and assisted on Garbutt's ninth goal of
the season in the first period. ... Oilers LW Taylor Hall
started in his customary spot on Edmonton's top line alongside C
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and RW Sam Gagner despite not participating
in morning skate, which was an optional workout. ... The
announced attendance was 12,823.
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