WINNIPEG, Manitoba _ Through the first 76 games of the season, the Stars had written this script before. The one with the dangerous scoring chances repelled by the opposing goalie. The strong defense not matched by the offense.
In the Stars' 5-2 win over Winnipeg on Monday night, the first period looked too familiar. The Stars were playing great hockey, rushing to breakaways and finding the slot and forcing a miracle save for Winnipeg to remain even. But the game remained goalless.
Monday night's second period provided the release Dallas has been looking for. The Stars scored three times in the middle period, breaking a tight divisional game open and cruising to just their second win in the last six games.
The Stars pulled five points ahead of Minnesota for the final playoff spot in the Western Conference, and three ahead of Colorado for the first wild-card spot. Dallas continues its four-game road trip in Calgary on Wednesday night.
Tyler Seguin and Radek Faksa each scored twice and Esa Lindell added one goal. Seguin's eighth multigoal game of the season gave him 31 on the season. Lindell's 10th goal of the season marked the first time in franchise history the Stars had three defensemen reach 10 goals (John Klingberg and Miro Heiskanen).
The flurry of goals could also have bigger implications than just the standings. As it stands now, the Stars would play the Jets in the first round of the playoffs, and would open their postseason run with a Game 1 at Bell MTS Place.
But Dallas entered Monday night with six straight losses in Winnipeg by a combined score of 31-10. The five goals the Stars scored were as many as the previous three games combined in Winnipeg.
Now, the final meeting of the regular season was a Stars win, and Dallas went 3-1-0 against the Jets.
"It would be tough for sure," Faksa said. "Winnipeg is one of the best teams in the league and I would say playoffs is a way different season than the regular season. It'll be way different games than the regular season."
The road trip promised to be the biggest of the season for the Stars. They'd just missed an opportunity on the last homestand to solidify their playoff standing, going 1-3-1 despite generating more shots and scoring chances than their opponents. Stars coach Jim Montgomery was pleased with parts of his team's game, but the results weren't there.
The Stars _ burned previously by poor months of March _ were suddenly in a position they recognized: traveling to Canada for a pivotal road trip. Montgomery asked for desperation from his team. Before the game, he showed clips from Saturday's loss to Pittsburgh.
"We showed video of players inspiring their teammates by winning one-on-one battles," Montgomery said. "We also showed some lost battles that deflate our team. You want to be able to build momentum for your teammates and the bench. To try and get into the playoffs, you got to win your battles."
The Stars won many battles Monday night. They led to scoring chances.
Jason Dickinson sprinted free for a short-handed breakaway. Miro Heiskanen's nifty backhand was somehow kept out by Mark Scheifele's stick. Seguin hit a post. John Klingberg knifed through the Jets during a power play for a great chance. Hellebuyck was up to the task.
But Lindell's shot popped the lid, and Faksa followed less than two minutes later. Seguin sniped the top corner on a 5-on-3 power play when nothing looked available. He roofed another in the third period.
In a potential playoff preview, the Stars looked up to the task.
"It is in the back of the mind, but really just getting into the playoffs is more on the front of our minds right now," Montgomery said.
