DALLAS - Dallas Stars coach Lindy Ruff expects a lot from left winger and captain Jamie Benn. And on Saturday night against the Montreal Canadiens at American Airlines Center, Benn delivered a three-point performance (two goals, one assist) in a 6-2 victory.

"You need your best players to be your best players and tonight he was," Ruff said of Benn. "That's big for our team."

Center Jason Spezza (goal, two assists) also had three points and goaltender Antti Niemi stopped 21 of 23 for Dallas.

Dallas (24-7-2) also got a goal and an assist each from center Tyler Seguin and right winger Patrick Sharp. Left winger Patrick Eaves also scored.

Montreal (20-11-3) got goals from left wingers Daniel Carr and Paul Byron. The Canadiens have lost three straight and seven of their last eight.

"It's a joke," Canadiens left winger Max Pacioretty said of the loss. "Eight penalties against a team like that, it's embarrassing."

Benn delivered his second goal of the night 31 seconds into the third period with Dallas on a 5-on-3 power play. Spezza broke his stick on the initial shot and after the puck deflected off Sharp's skate, it fell to Benn, who tapped it in at the far post for his NHL-leading 22nd goal of the season.

"He [Benn] obviously is one of the best players in the world," Stars left winger Vernon Fiddler said. "He plays physical, he does everything. When your captain's going like that, it definitely lifts your bench up."

Byron scored a shorthanded goal at 4:12 of the third on a wrist shot from the slot that traveled through Niemi's five-hole. Eaves answered 15 seconds later, scoring on a tap-in from the crease after a pass from Fiddler, who was behind the Montreal goal.

The Eaves goal signaled the end for Canadiens goaltender Mike Condon, who stopped 17 of 22 shots. Dustin Tokarski replaced him in net 4:27 into the third period. Tokarski then stopped all five shots he faced.

Dallas struck first when Spezza scored off the rush with a well-placed wrist shot from the right circle 1:34 into the game. After gaining possession near the Dallas blue line, Spezza rushed up the right side, first faking a slap shot before capping the sequence with a wrist shot that went top shelf to the short side of Condon.

The Stars broke the game open in the second with three goals to lead 4-1 after 40 minutes. Benn opened the period by scoring his 21st goal 1:24 into the second.

Canadiens defenseman Jeff Petry was attempting to clear the puck after Condon denied a wrist shot by Seguin from the right side. But Petry's attempt went to Benn, who beat Condon with a wrist shot over his blocker.

Sharp added a power-play goal at 3:06 of the second, redirecting a Seguin wrist shot from the edge of the left circle into the top-left corner of the visiting net.

Montreal answered at 11:35 of the second when Carr scored a power-play goal off a rebound. Niemi denied the initial shot by left winger Tomas Fleischmann, but Carr collected the carom at the far post, maneuvered around Niemi and scored with a wrist shot that deflected in off Niemi's left pad.

Dallas center Mattias Janmark had a goal off a rebound nullified at 13:21 of the second. Instead, Stars defenseman Jason Demers was called for goaltender interference after Condon was upended.

Seguin scored his 18th goal with 6:09 remaining in the second to restore Dallas' three-goal lead, beating Condon to his short side with a wrist shot from the left circle.

"It's not the same thing [as previous losses]," Canadiens coach Michel Theirren said. "Tonight, it was just a bad performance. We lost some games at the Bell Centre that we believe we were playing some really, really good hockey. It's not the same thing tonight."

NOTES: Canadiens RW Sven Andrighetto, D Greg Pateryn and D Jarred Tinordi were scratched. Andrighetto had played in the previous 12 consecutive games. ... Stars LW Travis Moen, D Patrik Nemeth and D Jamie Oleksiak were scratched. Moen spent five-plus seasons in Montreal before being traded to Dallas in November 2014. ... Montreal is starting an eight-game road trip and won't play again at Bell Centre until Jan. 6 against New Jersey. ... Dallas concluded a three-game homestand. ... Canadiens G Mike Condon started his second consecutive game and 20th game of the season. ... Stars G Antti Niemi started for the first time during the homestand. ... This was the first of two regular-season meetings between the teams. The Canadiens and Stars meet March 8 in Montreal. ... Canadiens RW Michael McCarron, the 25th pick in the 2013 NHL Draft, made his NHL debut.