DALLAS — The Dallas Stars had no answer for New Jersey on Tuesday night.
The Devils scored five goals, controlled the pace and handed Dallas a 5-1 loss that ended the Stars’ winning streak. For a team that had been playing some of its best hockey of the season, this was a night to forget.
New Jersey came out attacking and put Dallas on its heels early. Nico Hischier scored twice, including a goal just 38 seconds into the second period. Jesper Boqvist added another before Justin Hryckowian finally got the Stars on the board.
Dallas had little time to build on it. Luke Hughes scored just 28 seconds later, putting the Devils back in control. Jack Hughes added a fifth goal in the third period to finish off the Stars.
Glen Gulutzan wasn’t looking for excuses afterward.
“For sure, our worst game of the season,” the Dallas coach said.
Gulutzan said the problem wasn’t one player or one line. He saw a team that lost battles across the ice and never found its footing against a New Jersey club that took advantage of every opening.
The offensive numbers told much of the story. Dallas managed only 18 shots on goal and rarely made life difficult for New Jersey’s goaltender. The Stars struggled to get their forecheck going, and once the Devils gained control, Dallas couldn’t generate much of a response.
“We really couldn’t create much,” defenseman Miro Heiskanen said. “They were defending well and we weren’t doing good enough to get past them and get to the net.”
There were a few bright spots, but not nearly enough to change the outcome.
Hryckowian scored for the second consecutive game, continuing a productive stretch for the young forward. Arttu Hyry won 13 faceoffs, and Nils Lundkvist blocked four shots. Defenseman Lian Bichsel also played in his 100th NHL game.
The penalty kill continued to do its job, too. Dallas killed all three New Jersey power plays and has now gone six straight games without allowing a power-play goal, shutting down 22 consecutive penalties during that stretch.
But that was about as good as it got for the Stars.
Captain Jamie Benn took responsibility for his part in a fight with Brenden Dillon, saying he felt obligated to answer after his pass put Lundkvist in the middle of the play. Even so, the bigger issue was what happened over the previous 60 minutes.
Dallas couldn’t match New Jersey’s speed, couldn’t win enough puck battles and couldn’t make the Devils pay defensively.
“They played good. We just couldn’t get anything going tonight,” Benn said.
The Stars will have to put this one behind them quickly. Their next game is Thursday against Montreal, and they’ll need a much better effort if they want to keep one bad night from turning into a longer slump.
