Winnipeg Jets @ Dallas Stars 5-2 - 12/09

Adam Lowry scored two of three unanswered goals for the Winnipeg Jets in the second period on the way to a 5-2 win against the Dallas Stars at American Airlines Center on Tuesday. Winnipeg (15-9-5) led 2-1 after the first period on goals from Mathieu Perreault and Wheeler before Antoine Roussel tied it for Dallas early in the second. Lowry scored the next two goals, the first of which chased Stars goaltender Kari Lehtonen from the game, and Michael Frolik scored a shorthanded goal late in the second period to put the Jets up 5-2. Michael Hutchinson made 26 saves for the Jets, who got two assists from Dustin Byfuglien. Frolik and Wheeler each had a goal and an assist. Dallas (10-13-5), which had gone 4-0-1 in its previous five home games, still has not won a game against a Central Division opponent (0-7-3). Tyler Seguin scored his NHL-leading 22nd goal for the Stars, who have allowed five goals in five of their past six games. A power-play goal by Perreault gave Winnipeg the lead 5:23 into the first period. Perreault scored on a wrist shot from the right circle, knocking the puck into the open net after receiving a pass from Bryan Little from the left circle. Winnipeg went on the man advantage when Dallas defenseman Jordie Benn was called for delay of game after inadvertently shooting the puck over the boards at 4:58. Dallas answered at 9:09 when Seguin scored on the power play. Seguin beat Hutchinson top shelf with a one-timer from the edge of the left circle off a pass from Jason Spezza. The Stars were on the power play after Jets defenseman Mark Stuart was whistled for an interference penalty against Dallas left wing Erik Cole, who appeared to injure his left shoulder after going hard into the boards behind the Winnipeg net. Cole returned several minutes later. The Jets regained the lead at 14:01 of the first when Wheeler beat Lehtonen high on the blocker side from the left circle. It was Wheeler's ninth goal, his first in 11 games. Dallas tied it again at 3:29 of the second when Roussel scored his sixth goal on a backhand as he was falling to the ice. Roussel's goal came amid a flurry of activity in front of the Winnipeg net. The Jets answered less than four minutes later. Lowry scored the first of his two goals in the second period at 7:22 with a wrist shot from the left circle that hit Lehtonen's stick before going in through the Dallas goalie's five-hole. Lowry scored again at 9:41, this time knocking a backhand past Rynnas off a rebound for his fourth goal. Adam Pardy took the initial shot from the left circle, and Rynnas stopped it with a pad save. But Lowry was in perfect position to knock in the rebound to give the Jets a 4-2 lead. Ruff pulled Lehtonen in favor of backup Jussi Rynnas after Dallas fell behind 3-2. Hutchinson robbed Roussel with a glove save at the far post at 15:36 of the second with Roussel trying to knock in a pass from center Ryan Garbutt. Winnipeg went ahead 5-2 when Frolik scored on a shorthanded breakaway with 40 seconds remaining in the second period. Frolik won a race for the puck against Dallas defenseman Alex Goligoski, and then beat Rynnas with a wrist shot to his short side. Rynnas made 13 saves in relief of Lehtonen.

Stars Quotes

Lindy Ruff: "Their puck movement was a lot better than ours. There's no secret. We threw some pucks away and we tried some stuff that we didn't need to try. I didn't think our puck movement up top was sufficient to win this game. I was hoping [Rynnas] could maybe spark us a little bit."
Kari Lehtonen: "[My game] wasn't at the level where it needs to be. There were some good saves. The last goal, I was cheating on, thinking that [Lowry] was going to pass."
Alex Goligoski: "I lose my speed a little bit. [Frolik's Goal] was my fault."

Opposition View

Blake Wheeler: "It was great. [Lowry's performance]. He's been close all year, and I think when he's playing physical and he's playing fast, he creates a lot of havoc out there for himself and for his linemates. It's great to see him rewarded for all the good things he's done for our team this year."
Paul Maurice: "These are critical games. I liked the way we started. Our energy level was right, and we played a good, solid game. Yeah, [scoring on your first power play] is important on the road. Really settles you into a good feeling."
Michael Frolik: "I think [Hutchinson's] been awesome so far. He's working hard in practice. You can see that, and it shows in the games. He had some very big saves there. Yeah, very, very good game for him."
Adam Lowry: "I'd be lying if I was saying I was trying to shoot five-hole. It would've been nice if it would've gone short-side shelf, but they count just the same, so I was pretty happy when I caught [Lehtonen] on a bit of a change-up and went five-hole. Yeah, it's always nice to get a couple, especially when you're missing key guys like Evander (Kane). To contribute to the win was a pretty good feeling."
Michael Hutchinson: "[Being left-handed] definitely helped on that one save. Their players made a good play. Fortunately, got a good push across, was able to track the puck and make the save."