DALLAS _ Before the first eight games of the Stars season, leading into their 5-2 dismantling of the Ducks on Thursday night, Esa Lindell turned to his left in the Dallas dressing room and talked to Miro Heiskanen. Lindell's stall neighbors the baby-faced rookie defenseman and 19-year-old Finnish phenom who was the franchise's first-round pick last season.
Each night, Lindell told Heiskanen his first career goal was going to come that evening. In Dallas and Ottawa and New Jersey and Dallas, he was wrong eight times. As Heiskanen piled up the minutes and the shots and the chances, none found the back of the net.
"One game, Lindell said, "I'll be right."
"It's coming for sure," Julius Honka said Thursday morning.
Heiskanen scored his first career goal on Thursday night, slipping a cross-ice pass from Jason Spezza past Anaheim goaltender John Gibson in the second period. Heiskanen's goal was the game-winner, backing a two-goal effort from Jason Dickinson and tallies from Roman Polak and Mattias Janmark.
The Stars (5-4-0) have now won two straight games after a three-game losing streak, and begin a six-game road trip Sunday in Detroit.
Heiskanen's goal came during 4-on-4 play, moments after a bad change nearly cost the Stars a goal. Instead, Devin Shore led Spezza out of the zone, creating a 2-on-1 rush the other way. Heiskanen swatted the pass, trickling it under Gibson's left arm.
The goal showed flashes of what Heiskanen can be in Dallas: The skating, the hockey sense, the ability to join the rush. He is a franchise cornerstone for the Stars, someone who can be a second elite defenseman on the team with John Klingberg.
"Eventually, he's going to be a 40-point guy in this league," Stars coach Jim Montgomery said earlier this season. "That's, I think, at the minimum. But he's going to be a guy that not only gets 40 points but he's also going to play 28 minutes and match up against other team's top lines once he develops some man strength."
Heiskanen has been noticeable this season, even as just the third Stars teenager since the team moved to Dallas.
He impressed Montgomery on the first day of training camp. Veterans raved about his preseason performance. His second shift in the NHL was packed with speed and skill. And he's played top-four minutes along with time on the power play and the penalty kill.
"He looks like he's been around a few years already," Lindell said. "He's not sitting back, he's paying the game he played in junior. It really doesn't look like he's 19 when he's out there. He's doing really well."
Heiskanen almost notched his first career goal on Tuesday night against the Kings, a short-handed chance late in the game as he joined the rush. Montgomery said he was okay with Heiskanen jumping up in the play, even down a man and protecting a third period lead. He saw an odd-man rush and an opportunity to score.
"One, I'm glad he's on our team," Montgomery said. "Two, his skating is just unreal. I remember asking on the way in this morning, I asked my mom 'Does it show on TV how great a skater he is?' She goes 'Oh yes it does.' "
Heiskanen played a career-high with more than 24 minutes on Thursday night, leading the Stars in ice time and firing five shots on goal. At 19 years and 99 days old, he was the youngest defenseman in franchise history to score a goal. He was the second youngest player in Stars history to score (Ron Meighan at 18 years, 207 days).
