The Dallas Stars saw a lot of familiar problems crop up last night in a 5-3 road loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs. Playing against one of the most potent offensive teams in the NHL this season, the Stars suffered from a parade of turnovers and coverage mistakes while getting inconsistent goaltending.
The Stars trailed for 59:33 of the game's 60 minutes. Toronto built a 3-0 lead by the opening minte of the second frame and then went on to trade goals a few times with the Stars. A failed 5-on-3 power play in the third period was another momentum killer for Dallas.
Toronto got goals from James van Riemsdyk, Nadem Kadri, Phil Kessel (power play) and then a pair of tallies by Joffrey Lupul to pull away from the Stars. Dallas got goals from Jason Spezza, Ryan Garbutt (returning from a two-game suspension by the NHL) and Ales Hemsky to narrow three-goal margins to two.
In goal, the victorious Jonathan Bernier stopped 35 of 38 shots. Kari Lehtonen made 35 saves on 40 shots in a losing effort.
The Stars went 0-for-5 on the power play including the ill-fated 5-on-3. Lack of discipline was another problem for Dallas but the team managed to kill off six of seven Toronto power plays.
Dallas' top line had a rough night, getting held off the scoresheet and posting a minus-three for the game. A bad tone was set with captain Jamie Benn's turnover on the opening shift of the game, which directly contributed to van Riemsdyk's 10th goal of the season.
In terms of bright spots, rookie Stars defenseman produced a plus-three night and assisted on Garbutt's goal early in the third period. Veteran Alex Goligoski was able to play through a lower-body injury sustained in the team's previous game. Meanwhile, the struggling Hemsky scored for the second time in the last three games, which could give him a much-needed dose of restored offensive confidence.
Earlier today, the Stars placed backup goaltender Anders Lindbà¤ck on waivers for purposes of assigning the veteran to the AHL's Texas Stars. The team has recalled goaltender Jussi Rynnà¤s from the AHL, along with forward Curtis McKenzie. In four starts and five appearances for the Stars this season, Lindbà¤ck posted a less-than-mediocre .861 save percentage, a record of 0-5-0 and a goals against average of 4.63 per game.