Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Stars Jack Up The Jackets. Dallas Stars Game 20: 5-4 OT Win at the Columbus Blue Jackets


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The back-to-back slump is over.

Loui Eriksson’s diving goal in overtime gave the Dallas Stars a 5-4 win against the Columbus Blue Jackets Tuesday night. It was the first time this season, and the second time in two seasons, that the Stars won the second game of a back-to-back.

It took nine goals, but the Stars were the first and the last to score and never trailed in the win.

Dallas opened the scoring with five minutes left in the first period when Cody threw the puck in the slot off Brenden Morrow’s skate and in. The play was reviewed, but it was determined Morrow did not kick the puck in.

Columbus scored 1:21 into the second period when Columbus won a faceoff in the Stars’ zone and Nikita Nikitin blasted a shot from the point. The second line dominated the game for the Stars and provided the goal for a 2-1 lead when Roy popped in a rebound that fell to the right of Sergei Bobrovsky.

Fifty-one seconds later, Columbus tied the game when Richard Bachman kicked out a rebound that Derek Dorsett was left to wrist in over Bachman’s right shoulder.

New second-line member Antoine Roussel gave the Stars back the lead when he re-directed a shot blasted from the point by Brenden Dillon. There was only one penalty in the first period and none in the second, but a Dillon scuffle with Colton Gillies to open the third led to a 4-on-4 in which Bachman came up with a big save on a Ryan Johansen breakaway.

Columbus did tie the game up 6:16 into the period when Adrian Aucoin’s shot from the right wing boards hit a skate in front and drifted to a wide open Cam Atkinson to Bachman’s right. Atkinson quickly fired the puck into the goal past a sprawling Bachman.

Later in the third period, Cody Eakin squeaked a wrist shot from the blue line through Bobrovsky for the 4-3 lead, but a turnover in the defensive zone led to an R.J. Umberger goal that tied the game back up. For the second game in a row, the Stars had a lead entering the third period, but had to settle the score in overtime.

On the game-winning goal, Dillon sent a pass over to Derek Roy on the right wing boards and he one-timed the puck at the net. Bobrovsky made the save, but the rebound bounced out directly in front of the net. Eriksson battled to get to the front of the net, corralled the puck and dove as he tucked it into the net behind Bobrovsky.

The Stars will head back home and prepare to face the Edmonton Oilers on Thursday night.  

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