Comeback Stars Ride Four Straight, Defeat Montreal on Home Ice

The comeback kids were back again, as the Dallas Stars rode four straight goals to defeat the Montreal Canadiens 4-2 on home ice Friday night. 

The Stars began the game just as they ended Wednesday’s loss to Edmonton: sloppy. 

The Canadiens tallied two goals early in the first and second periods and held Dallas to very little offensively for nearly 30 minutes. 

But as the second period neared its end, Dallas began to step on the throttle and was soon rewarded. 

On the Stars second power play, Jason Robertson patiently held onto the puck at the top of the circle and found the stick of Roope Hintz, who redirected it into the top corner to give the Stars life. Fast-forward to the first three minutes of the third, and it was nearly an identical scenario. 

Third power play, Robertson with the puck up high, Hintz with the deflection in front, and a tie game at the AAC. It was just another example of the big-time plays that the Stars top offensive players have made all season long. 

“The story of our team has been: the guys who are supposed to score have scored, and we’ve gotten some depth scoring,” Stars Head Coach Pete DeBoer said. “When you get that and you have goaltenders like we have, you have a chance to win every night.”

But still, the storybook ending was yet to come. 

After completely tilting the ice and keeping most of the pressure in the Montreal end, the Stars were rewarded with their fourth power play of the night. And this time, it was not the top dogs that stepped up. 

Off the rush, Ryan Suter picked up a loose puck in the corner and quickly found Wyatt Johnston streaking in alone in the high slot. Johnston’s first shot was blocked but the rebound caromed right back to the 19-year-old, who had the full net to shoot at and made no mistake. 

Johnston’s 10th goal of the season gave Dallas their first lead, their third power-play goal of the night, and handed the 19-year-old a Dallas Stars record as the youngest player to score in three straight games. 

“Oh wow, I didn’t know that,” DeBoer said. “That’s impressive. What do you say about the kid? He just keeps getting better and better. More confident every time out there. It’s not a flash or a fluke, we’ve seen it every day here. We’re starting to get used to it.”

Joel Kiviranta added an empty netter in the final minute, and the Stars skated off to the Christmas break with another comeback on home ice, and a  4-2 victory, their 20th of the season in just 35 games. 

It’s big,” Hintz said. “This year, we’ve been doing that a lot. And now we will get a couple days off, so that was a huge win for us.” 

Sam’s Three Stars 

• First Star: Roope Hintz, DAL (2 goals)
• Second Star: Jason Robertson, DAL (2 assists) 
• Third Star: Wyatt Johnston, (game-winning goal) 

He Said It 

“He has a computer in his head,” Hintz said of Jason Robertson. “So it’s nice to be there and see what he does.”