| A lot of the things that have been
going the Stars' way recently didn't go their Wednesday
night in New Jersey, and the end result was the end of
their winning streak at six games.
Out went the points streak at eight
games as well. For the New Jersey Devils, their winning
streak hit five games.
On this night the Devils had a lot of
things go their way, starting with the goaltending. It
didn't start that way. Martin Brodeur allowed a couple
of stoppable shots to get by him to spot the Stars a 2-0
lead in the first period, but after that he was
basically flawless.
It's hard to fault Marty Turco for the
three that got by him, but Brodeur came up with the big
stops on this night and was a difference maker.
Dallas' special teams, which have been
very good during the streak, couldn't come up big on
this night. The power play had a chance to extend a
one-goal lead late in the second with a lengthy two-man
advantage, but the Devils turned the tables on the
Stars, killing it off and then scoring to tie the game
in what was a key turning point in the contest.
The Stars' chance with the
five-on-three, which lasted 1:37, came with the Stars up
2-1 with five minutes to go in the second period. It was
a chance to extend their lead or at least establish some
momentum. But with Brodeur making some big stops and the
Devils killing off the chance, momentum seemed to tilt
in New Jersey's direction.
Just 1:24 after they killed off the
back-to-back penalties, the Devils tied the game when
Patrik Elias set up Brian Gionta in the slot.
"I think the 5-on-3 was the difference
in the game," said Stars center Mike Ribeiro. "If we
scored a goal, it's a different game."
Said Devils coach Brent Sutter: "That
5-on-3 was massive. Marty (Brodeur) made some great
saves and the guys on the ice were great. Then we got
that second (goal) and we were on our way."
The Stars have been a team that has
gotten stronger as the game goes along recently, but on
this night it was New Jersey, which was well rested,
that got stronger the longer the game moved along. After
falling behind 2-0 in the first after the Brodeur
miscues, the Devils pushed hard in the second and were
still pushing hard in the third period.
The Stars got another power play
chance early in the third, but the Devils, who seemed to
have far more jump at this point in the game, got a
couple of good scoring chances shorthanded.
The Stars' got a good chance to take
control again when Niklas Hagman had a breakaway,
but Brodeur took care of that with a perfectly timed
poke check.
"We’re right in on him alone, and you
look at it, that’s the way it goes," Stars coach Dave
Tippett said about the breakaway chance. "On good
nights, those go in and on not-so-good nights, they
don’t. They didn’t go in tonight."
And they did go in for the Devils
three times to two for the Stars. The Devils made the
big plays, took advantage of Dallas mistakes by turning
them into goals and skated away with the win, ending the
Stars' winning streak at six and extending their own to
five games.
The Stars, who hit a little bump in
the road Wednesday, now move into Pennsylvania where
they will have back-to-back games against Pittsburgh and
Philadelphia Friday and Saturday night.
They'll face another well rested team
in the Penguins on Friday. Pittsburgh hasn't played in
almost a week, while the Stars will be playing their
fourth game in six nights on this road trip. That will
be another challenge. |
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