Final
Dallas Stars 4 – Anaheim Ducks 3
Deja vu turned out a to be a mirage for the Stars this time around. Up by one goal on the Anaheim Ducks and time winding down, the Stars watched as two Anaheim goals got disallowed; thus preserving a 4-3 win and possibly saving their season. Dallas got two goals from Mike Ribeiro and a goal each from Jeff Woywitka and Brenden Morrow as the Stars offense finally saw signs of life.
Dallas didn’t come out all that strong, but they played well enough and got some luck that had been eluding them in the past seven games. The forwards on the team finally scored some goals and although he looked tired and uncomfortable in the game, Kari Lehtonen got the job done. The Stars next four games are against teams that are already out of the playoffs so they must take adavantage of the opportunity and win each of them. The offense has to continue to click.
The Stars lead was put to the test in the final two minutes as the Ducks began to throw everything at the Stars. Teemu Selenne scored what looked to be the game-tying goal, but it was disallowed after officials ruled that Saku Koivu interfered with Kari Lehtonen’s chances of stopping the shot. The Ducks scored again in the final minute of the game, but again that goal was disallowed because it was ruled that Corey Perry hand-passed the puck.
The Ducks had goals from Corey Perry, Ryan Getzlaf and Lubomir Visnovsky; the group that has been killing the Stars this year.
With the win, the Stars (39-28-11 89 points) move within three points of the Chicago Blackhawks, who lost 2-0 to the Tampa Bay Lightning. Each team has four games left.
Dallas’ next game is a Tuesday home game against the Columbus Blue Jackets.
1st Period:
Dallas gets off to a bit of a slow start here. Anaheim is controlling the puck and not letting the Stars get into any kind of rhythm.
Dallas gets a power-play one minute into the game but are unable to do anything during it. They only get one shot, at the very end, and are unable to pressure Ray Emery very much.
Ryan Getzlaf scores his 19th goal of the season off a couple of turnovers by the Stars. Mike Ribeiro is pickpocketed at center ice, leading to a three-on-one chance for the Ducks. Karlis Skrastins makes a great play by blocking the pass but the Ducks come right back a few seconds later with another three-on-one chance. This time Bobby Ryan is able fake out Woywitka and find Getzlaf, who fires it by Lehtonen.
The Stars answer three minutes later as a Woywitka shot from around the blue line somehow makes its’ way by Emery. The Stars had been able to put a lot of offensive pressure on the Ducks prior to this and were able to catch them changing, which led to Woywitka’s goal.
Dallas’ second power-play of the period looks much better than the first. Although they are only credited with one shot, they get a lot of pucks towards the net and pressure on Emery. There were a couple of times that Emery was sprawled on the ice, but Stars players couldn’t find the puck in time.
The Stars second goal comes off great, tough work by Brendan Morrow. He wrestles the puck away from Lubomir Visnovsky and finds Ribeiro who is sitting right by the net. Ribeiro scores easily, putting the Stars ahead 2-1.
The Ducks are able to answer just a minute later off of another turnover. Jamie Benn has the puck stolen while he is behind the net and the puck rolls around in front of the net. Kari Lehtonen is out of position and no where near the net as Teemu Selanne shoots the puck. Stephan Robidas makes a miraculous save by stopping it with his stick as Lehtonen is rolling around on the ground trying to get in position. The puck goes to the side where Visnovsky is waiting. From an impossible angle, he shoots the puck and finds the back of the net, tying the game at 2-2.
1st Period Stats
| Dallas | Anaheim | |
| Score | 2 | 2 |
| Shots | 12 | 9 |
| Penalty Minutes | 0 | 4 |
| Power Plays | 0 for 2 | None |
| Blocked Shots | 3 | 6 |
| Hits | 6 | 15 |
| Faceoff Wins | 8 | 11 |
2nd Period:
The Stars start the period in a horrible way by taking two penalties in the first two minutes as Jamie Benn and Tom Wandell both take high-sticking penalties, putting them in a 5-on-3 disadvantage.
During the 5-on-3, Karlis Skrastins and Robidas block numerous shots and passes, keeping the game tied and the season alive.
There was more desperation in the Stars’ game at the beginning of this period. Defenders were giving up their bodies and flying towards the puck. On the offensive side, they were rushing the net and peppering Emery with shots.
Dallas scores their third goal of the game as their pressure gets an open shot for Morrow, who fires it over Emery’s left shoulder for his 29th goal of the season. Good forechecking and puck battles by Langenbrunner and Wandell gets the puck to Morrow in the middle of the offensive zone.
The Stars continued their pressure after the goal and gets a power-play opportunity as a result. Steve Ott gets a huge chance right in front of Emery but is unable to get the puck past him with his initial shot as well as his two follow-up chances. It’s a good looking power-play, but they can’t score.
Stars get another power-play with seven minutes left in the period as Steve Ott is tripped by Toni Lydman.
Dallas finally scores on their power-play as Mike Ribeiro gets another point blank goal in the game. Ribeirogets the puck after a shot from Brad Richards rebounds to him and promptly deposits it in the back of the net.
With 3:03 remaining, Dallas gets another power-play as Jamie Benn gets high-sticked. Stars look a bit tentative on this one however and Jamie Langenbrunner gets the puck stolen by Corey Perry. Perry scores short-side on Lehtonen, cutting the lead to 4-3.
| Dallas | Anaheim | |
| Score | 4 | 3 |
| Shots | 13 | 6 |
| Penalty Minutes | 4 | 8 |
| Power Plays | 1 for 4 | 0 for 2 |
| Blocked Shots | 4 | 9 |
| Hits | 6 | 5 |
| Faceoff Wins | 11 | 10 |
3rd Period:
Stars get off to a very slow start to begin the period. The Ducks are playing very aggressive and geting a ton of shots at Lehtonen. A mad scramble in front of the net turns into an odd-man rush for the Stars, but Brad Richards’ shot is stopped by Emery.
Stars survived a critical point where their tired fourth line had to take on the Getzlaf, Ryan and Perry line after an icing. The Ducks were able to get a shot on goal but, Lehtonen held onto the puck, allowing the Stars to make a change and get the Ducks top line off the ice.
Stars went into pure defensive mode this period to try to preserve the lead. They only managed six shots in the period and no real scoring chances.
Stars got a huge break when the Ducks scored with 2 minutes left in the game. The goal was called off because Saku Koivu ran into Kari Lehtonen and was called for interference. Of course, it was Teemu Selanne who had scored the (luckily) disallowed goal.
Things got crazy with one minute left in the game as Jamie Benn was called for a slashing penalty. With the Ducks going with an empty net, it becomes a 6-on-4 match.
The Ducks get another disallowed goal when they score after a hand pass. Stars are living by the skin of their teeth in the last two minutes of the game.
With 20 seconds left, there was an insane scramble in front of the net that had eight players either sprawled on the ground or whacking away with sticks. The puck rolls right of the goal and the Stars survive.
| Dallas | Anaheim | |
| Score | 4 | 3 |
| Shots | 6 | 12 |
| Penalty Minutes | 2 | 0 |
| Power Plays | None | 0 for 1 |
| Blocked Shots | 4 | 2 |
| Hits | 6 | 5 |
| Faceoff Wins | 13 | 9 |
Game Stats and Scoring Summary
| Dallas | Anaheim | |
| Score | 4 | 3 |
| Shots | 31 | 27 |
| Penalty Minutes | 6 | 12 |
| Power Plays | 1 for 6 (17%) | 0 for 3 |
| Blocked Shots | 11 | 17 |
| Hits | 18 | 25 |
| Faceoff Wins | 32 | 30 |
1st Period:
- 7:27 Ryan Getzlaf (19) Dallas 0 – Anaheim 1
Assists: Bobby Ryan, Corey Perry
- 10:13 Jeff Woywitka (2) Dallas 1 – Anaheim 1
Assists: Brenden Morrow, Loui Eriksson
- 17:07 Mike Ribeiro (17) Dallas 2 – Anaheim 1
Assists: Brenden Morrow, Jeff Woywitka
- 18:41 Lubomir Visnovsky (18) Dallas 2 – Anaheim 2
Unassisted
2nd Period:
- 7:20 Brenden Morrow (29) Dallas 3 – Anaheim 2
Assists: Jamie Langenbrunner, Tom Wandell
- 15:04 Mike Ribeiro (18) (Power Play) Dallas 4 – Anaheim 2
Assists: Brad Richards, Jamie Benn
- 18:43 Corey Perry (47) (Shorthanded) Dallas 4 – Anaheim 3
Unassisted
3rd Period: No goals
