NHL - Phoenix Coyotes @ Dallas Stars 1-4 - Thursday, March 31, 2016

Jamie Benn scored his 40th goal, and Antti Niemi made 31 saves to help the Dallas Stars to a 4-1 win against the Coyotes at American Airlines Center on Thursday. The Dallas captain scored at 10:43 of the second period with a wrist shot from the right circle that got through goalie Mike Smith, who made 29 saves. Benn, who had an assist, is second in the NHL in goals behind the Washington Capitals’ Alex Ovechkin (44) and is the first 40-goal scorer for the Stars since Mike Modano had 50 in 1993-94, their first season in Dallas after relocating from Minnesota.
The Stars have 103 points, two more than the St. Louis Blues for first place in the Central Division and Western Conference. St. Louis, which has five games remaining, hosts the Boston Bruins on Friday; Dallas, which has four left, plays at the Los Angeles Kings on Saturday afternoon. Patrick Eaves, Radek Faksa and Patrick Sharp scored for the Stars, who have won three games in a row and six of their past seven. Ales Hemsky, who has 13 points in the past 12 games, had two assists.
Martin Hanzal scored for Phoenix, who were eliminated from playoff contention with the loss. Hanzal gave Phoenix an early lead when he scored on a tap-in from the slot with 2:53 remaining in the first period. He sustained an upper-body injury later in the period and did not return. Tippett said that Hanzal has the same illness as Ekman-Larsson and each will be re-evaluated Friday.
Eaves scored 58 seconds after Hanzal, sending a wrist shot from the right circle through Smith’s five-hole to tie it 1-1. It was his his 10th goal. Faksa gave Dallas its first lead 11 seconds into the second period, knocking in a pass from Hemsky after Antoine Roussel whiffed on it. It was his fourth goal. Sharp scored into an empty net with Dallas on the power play with 1:11 remaining. It was his 20th goal. It was the first win for Dallas against Phoenix this season. The Coyotes won the first two games, each on home ice, by a combined 9-4. Benn's 87 points are second in the League and equal the NHL career-high he set last season when he won the Art Ross Trophy.

Stars Quotes

Jamie Benn: "It means I've got good linemates and good teammates. They're setting me up 40 times, I guess. We just wanted a little payback. They had our number in Phoenix a couple times this year. We wanted to come out with a strong effort. After they got their goal, I think this team took over a little bit."
Lindy Ruff: "It's a tough mark to get to in today's game. There's not many players going to get there, so it's pretty special and it's a heck of a year so far for him. [Roussel, Faksa and Hemsky] just seem to play well together. You've got both wings, you've got guys that are really skating well. You've got a guy in the middle that's playing physical and making plays. They've really come together as a line."
"[The empty-net goal] is important so you can put a team away. It doesn't allow the other team to get set up, it doesn't allow the other team to get back in the game."
Ales Hemsky: "I feel pretty confident. I] changed my game a little bit; a little more patient, focused on defense a lot, and then [I] just wait for opportunities.”