Hintz delivers in the shootout
Roope Hintz scored the deciding goal in the fourth round of the shootout, lifting the Dallas Stars to a 3-2 victory over the Colorado Avalanche at Ball Arena on Wednesday. Hintz described his approach on the winning attempt, saying he tried to come in a bit slower from the left side, pick his spot and get a shot off. He added that it is always a good match against Colorado and that after losing 3-2 to the Avalanche the previous day, it felt good to come back and earn the win.[S1][S2][S3][S4][S5][S6]
Miro Heiskanen and Arttu Hyry each scored in regulation for Dallas, and Casey DeSmith stopped 25 shots. The Stars improved to 3-3-1 and ended a two-game slide (0-1-1) that included the first game of the home-and-home series against Colorado on Tuesday. Nazem Kadri also scored in the shootout for the Avalanche.[S1][S2][S3][S4][S5][S6]
Even matchup, tight finish
Dallas coach Glen Gulutzan called the previous night a big boy game and felt his team slightly outplayed Colorado without earning points. He thought the Avalanche had the better of the third period on Wednesday, while the first two periods were even. Gulutzan praised DeSmith and described the six periods across the two games as very even, noting that Dallas won two points while Colorado took three.[S1]
Colorado coach Jared Bednar said he loved the first and third periods but was not pleased with his team's habits and discipline in the second. He liked the response in the third and felt the overall effort over two nights was solid despite coming up short. Avalanche goaltender Scott Wedgewood said the teams battle each other in a rivalry, fight for the Central Division, and that with two good teams it often comes down to one play, like a card game.[S1]
Goals, overturned calls and injuries
After two first-period Colorado goals were overturned, Gabriel Landeskog put the Avalanche ahead 1-0 at 4:55 of the second period by deflecting Kadri's shot while cutting across the crease. Wedgewood said the overturned goals were annoying but that the team found ways to put the puck in the net and just needed to keep doing what it was doing. Heiskanen tied it 1-1 at 15:03 with a wrist shot from the left dot that beat Wedgewood top shelf short side, set up by Mikko Rantanen from outside the right circle.[S1]
Hyry gave Dallas a 2-1 lead with a short-handed goal at 1:20 of the third period, intercepting a Cale Makar play at his own blue line, outracing the defenseman and scoring forehand to backhand past Wedgewood's glove. Hyry said his father always told him to use that move and that it was instinct, adding that he had many chances recently without scoring and it felt nice to finally convert. Hintz said Hyry deserved the goal after so many good looks.[S1]
Brock Nelson tied it 2-2 at 8:21, finishing a bouncing puck short side around DeSmith's right leg into the open net after Artturi Lehkonen's initial shot caromed off Dallas defenseman Thomas Harley. Avalanche forward Nicolas Roy did not play due to an upper-body injury, and Bednar said he would be reevaluated Thursday and is considered day to day. Makar, who missed Tuesday's win for the birth of his twins, finished plus-1 with two shots in 22:54 of ice time and said he felt really good and that it was a cool thought process to have something to go home to. Stars forward Oskar Back left in the first period with an upper-body injury and did not return; Gulutzan did not provide an update.[S1]
Notable milestones
Heiskanen scored his 70th career goal, passing Daryl Sydor for sixth most by a defenseman in Stars franchise history, and became the seventh Finland-born defenseman to reach 70 goals. DeSmith earned his 100th career win, becoming the 26th American-born goaltender in NHL history and sixth active to win at least 100 regular-season games. Landeskog factored on a game-opening goal for the 90th time in his career, tying Alex Tanguay for the ninth-most instances in Avalanche/Nordiques franchise history.[S1]
