Antoine Roussel and Jamie Benn scored 16 seconds apart in the third period to help the Dallas Stars to a 5-4 win against the Capitals at American Airlines Center on Saturday. Erik Cole, Tyler Seguin and Jason Spezza each had a goal and an assist, Jyrki Jokipakka had two assists, and Kari Lehtonen made 28 saves for the Stars (20-17-7), who finished a three-game homestand 2-1-0. Eric Fehr, Andre Burakovsky, Alex Ovechkin and Nicklas Backstrom scored for Washington (24-13-8), which lost 4-3 at the Nashville Predators on Friday. The Capitals rallied from down 3-0 to tie the game. Dallas scored two quick goals to break the 3-3 tie. Roussel scored his 11th on a tap-in at 3:14, and Benn scored his 13th at 3:30 with a wrist shot that beat Washington goalie Justin Peters high to his short side off the rush. Peters made 21 saves in his first appearance for Washington since Nov. 29. Braden Holtby had started the previous 21 games. Backstrom's 14th goal made it 5-4 with 3:26 remaining. He one-timed a pass from Ovechkin from the slot. The Stars led 3-0 early in the second period. Seguin scored his NHL-leading 27th goal with Dallas on the power play 2:26 into the first, beating Peters with a wrist shot from the slot that went in under the goalie's right shoulder. Cole redirected a Jokipakka wrist shot from near the Capitals blue line for his 11th goal with 1:42 remaining in the first. A video review determined Cole's stick was at or below the crossbar when he touched the puck. Spezza scored his eighth goal by tapping in a pass from Cole off the rush 4:13 into the second. Washington scored 1:17 later when Fehr beat Lehtonen through the five-hole from the right circle for his 14th goal. The Capitals made it 3-2 with 3:44 left in the second when Burakovsky roofed a wrist shot into the far side, scoring over Lehtonen's left shoulder from the edge of the left circle. Washington tied it 21 seconds into the third period when Ovechkin scored his 25th goal on a breakaway. Backstrom blocked a shot by Dallas defenseman Alex Goligoski and the carom fell to Ovechkin in the neutral zone. Ovechkin finished with a wrist shot over Lehtonen's left pad. Ovechkin credited Lehtonen for a solid bounce-back performance after being pulled in the second period Tuesday against the Ottawa Senators when he allowed three goals on the first five shots he faced. Trotz complimented Peters, who had not appeared in an NHL game in 49 days. The Capitals have lost back-to-back games for the first time since Nov. 29 and Dec. 2. They host the Edmonton Oilers on Tuesday in their final game before the All-Star break, which ends Jan. 26.
Stars Quotes
Lindy Ruff: "That was up and down. We controlled the game, we didn't control the game, we fought back, scored a couple, and then hung on for dear life. We made some big mistakes at just critical times of the game. I thought he played great. [Jokipakka, who was recalled from Texas of the AHL on Saturday morning after Trevor Daley was ruled out with an undisclosed injury]. Started just a little slow, but I thought he played great. It was a decision whether I was going to play him, but I'm glad I played him because he's got good size."Jason Spezza: "They have a high-powered offense. They got some momentum on us and some quick goals. I thought it was a great response by (Cody) Eakin's line, and then they get a big goal by Jamie (Benn)."
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