Mike Modano's #9 was safely in the rafters of the American Airlines Center, and it was time for the current Stars to set the festivities aside and focus on the task at hand.
Jamie Benn got things started quickly
with a lethal one-timer off a beautiful feed from Rich Peverley to put the good
guys on top just 31 seconds into the game.
However, the Stars weren’t able to capitalize further on their early
momentum and Minnesota’s Erik Haula would make them pay as he sniped one past
Kari Lehtonen while the Wild were shorthanded.
Haula would make an even greater impact later in the game, but it was
one that neither side would be thrilled with.
The second period was just as back
and forth as the first. Alex Chiasson
poked one home on the power play after a Tyler Seguin slap shot squirted
through Wild netminder Darcy Keumper and settled down just a few inches from
the goal line. However, Minnesota’s
Charlie Coyle responded with a power play tally of his own to tie the game off
a mad scramble in front of Lehtonen.
Minnesota led by seven on the shot chart after two periods.
The Stars could not have picked a
worse way to start the third, as a bad pass off the stick of Brenden Dillon was
picked off and put home by Kyle Brodziak just 1:23 into the period. Unfortunately, things would quickly go from
bad to worse for the home side as Erik Haula came in alone on a breakaway just
under seven minutes in. He didn’t score,
but he was out of control and off balance so much that he went crashing into
Lehtonen, the crown of his helmet directly impacting Kari’s jaw. Lehtonen’s helmet then flew off as he fell
backwards; so that the back of his head directly struck the crossbar. The Dallas fans and players understandably
went ballistic, and the refs sympathized with them, giving Haula a five-minute
major for charging and a game misconduct.
However, the damage was done, as Kari was forced to leave the game in
favor of newly-acquired backup Tim Thomas.
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Dallas’ early-season woes on the power play
then seemed to reappear. That is, until
Tyler Seguin put the team on his back and drove Keumper’s net, collecting his
own rebound and tucking it five-hole to tie the game. With the crowd again
firmly behind the Green Machine, Erik Cole picked off a cross-ice pass at his
own blue line and skated in alone on Keumper, going stick-side and finding the
twine for a 4-3 lead that his team would never relinquish. It was a fitting ending to such a massive
night for this franchise and this city.
Mike Modano certainly had to approve.
What the injury to Kari Lehtonen means to this team moving forward has yet to be fully determined, but there seems to be a consensus among fans that GM Jim Nill made a very good move in acquiring Tim Thomas at the trade deadline. The Green Machine now has a veteran netminder with two Vezina's a Conn Smythe, and a Stanley Cup under his belt to turn to until the Big Finn returns.
You
can view the full highlights of this game here with Stars Game Rewind:
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