ST. PAUL, Minn. _ The Stars had been mired in a slump, winning just once in their last six games, while the Wild's baggage included a three-game losing streak.
Dallas struggled to get pucks behind goalie Devan Dubnyk, the same problem the Wild were having at the other end with Ben Bishop. And neither team's power play could convert despite plenty of chances.
Even Wild winger Luke Kunin and Stars defenseman Roman Polak looked identical after dropping their gloves for a second-period fight, peeling away from each other with similarly bloodied, battered faces.
But this mirror image eventually shattered, and it was the Wild left to pick up the pieces after the Stars broke the stalemate for a 2-1 overtime win Saturday in front of 19,074 at Xcel Energy Center that sent the Wild into the four-day holiday break shouldering a season-high four-game slide.
Winger Alexander Radulov pushed the Stars ahead on a short-side wrist shot with 10 seconds left in the extra period, this after winger Jason Zucker tied it when he buried a loose puck in front with 2:03 to go in the third period.
Earlier in the frame, Dallas captain Jamie Benn finally opened the scoring when he directed in a centering feed from Radulov at 1:58.
Bishop totaled 30 saves; Dubnyk had 25.
An even struggle between the Wild and Stars wasn't surprising.
Just a point separated the two Central Division rivals in the standings before puck drop amid eerily similar records, and competitive action ensued.
After the Wild would take a turn applying pressure, the Stars would respond in kind.
Rookie Jordan Greenway shrugged off defenseman Gavin Bayreuther in the corner with a hit before setting up center Charlie Coyle for a shot in-tight, and Zucker had a shot sail off-target when it clipped defenseman Esa Lindell's stick.
Later, Dubnyk gobbled up a 2-on-1 attempt by the Stars off the stick of winger Denis Gurianov. Dubnyk also made a clutch poke check on center Jason Dickinson early in the second period.
The two teams even shared chances on a string of Wild penalties, since center Eric Fehr was stopped on a short-handed breakaway.
Overall, the Wild survived four Dallas power plays _ improving to 20 for 20 on the penalty kill over the last nine games.
But the Wild also couldn't capitalize when it earned an extra attacker.
Its best look came after the midway point of the second period when Polak picked a fight with Kunin after Kunin finished his check on Polak in front of the Wild's bench.
Aside from each player receiving a five-minute major for fighting, Polak was tagged with an additional four minutes for roughing and instigating and a 10-minute misconduct.
During the four-minute power play, the Wild managed just one shot on net _ a windup from Zucker that Bishop gobbled up.
Zucker, who was stopped on a breakaway earlier in the period, had another shot blocked, and winger Nino Niederreiter had an attempt go wide. The Wild finished 0 for 3.
It looked like that blown opportunity would haunt the Wild, especially after Benn's early goal in the third.
But Zucker's equalizer paved the way for the Wild's first extra-time appearance since Oct. 20, a backdrop that sealed a point for the team.
