Radek Faksa scored two goals as the red-hot Dallas Stars recorded a 4-1 win over the visiting Colorado Avalanche on Tuesday.
With a 7-1-0 record in their past eight games, the Stars have recovered from an ugly 1-7-1 start to the season. Dallas is on a four-game winning streak, with two of those wins coming over Colorado in the last five days.
The Avalanche are on the opposite track from their Central Division rivals. Colorado is now winless in five games (0-4-1) after posting an 8-1-1 record over its first 10 outings.
It took the Stars just 19 seconds to take the lead, as they capitalized on a Samuel Girard turnover in his own zone. Jason Dickinson was in position to collect his first goal in the season, a score that stood despite a review challenge from the Avalanche.
Faksa's chip shot 5:46 into the first period extended Dallas' lead. Playing in front of Colorado's net, Faksa just got enough of the puck to direct it up into the air, bouncing off the glove of Philipp Grubauer.
Colorado didn't record its first shot on goal until 16 minutes into the game yet managed to cut the Stars' lead in half before the first period was out. With only 36 seconds remaining, J.T. Compher blasted a wrist shot from the edge of the circle that found its way past Ben Bishop.
Faksa's second goal of the game came in controversial fashion 10:54 into the second period. On a Dallas power play, Faksa appeared to redirect a point shot with a broken stick after his stick was snapped by the initial shot. The Avalanche again challenged the play, but the call stood to give Faksa the third multi-goal game of his career.
Faksa's goal was the only power-play marker of a game that was short on even-strength play. The two teams combined for 30 penalty minutes, with the Avalanche going 0-for-8 power play chances while Dallas was 1-for-7 with the extra man.
Bishop stopped 36 of 37 shots to improve his record to 4-1-0 over his past six outings. Bishop has a sterling .957 save percentage over those six games.
Dallas defenseman John Klingberg didn't play in the third period after sustaining what the team described as a lower-body injury. It appeared the ailment stemmed from a second-period hit by Colorado's Nikita Zadorov.
--Field Level Media
Colorado | Dallas | |
J.T. Compher 1 | Points | Radek Faksa 2 |
J.T. Compher 1 | Goals | Radek Faksa 2 |
Vladislav Kamenev 1 | Assists | Taylor Fedun 1 |
N/A | Power Play Goals | Radek Faksa 1 |
N/A | Short Handed Goals | N/A |
Philipp Grubauer .895 | Save Percentage | Ben Bishop .973 |
Philipp Grubauer 34 | Saves | Ben Bishop 36 |
Team | Shots | Goals | Power Play | Penalty Kill | Penalty Mins | Face Offs Won |
Colorado | 37 | 1 | 0-8 | 6-7 | 14 | 23 |
Dallas | 38 | 4 | 1-7 | 8-8 | 16 | 34 |