Minnesota 6, Dallas 2
When: 8:00 PM ET, Sunday, February 22, 2015
Where: Xcel Energy Center, Saint Paul, Minnesota
Referees:
Brian Pochmara, Dan O'Rourke
Linesmen:
Mark Wheler, Michel Cormier
Attendance:
18754
By SportsDirect Inc.
Wild 6, Stars 2: Zach Parise scored twice during a six-goal third-period blitz as host Minnesota won its third straight to move into a wild-card spot for the first time in three months.
Mikael Granlund added a goal and two assists while captain Mikko Koivu, Stephane Veilleux and rookie defenseman Matt Dumba also tallied as the Wild improved to 11-1-1 in their last 13 games. Blue-liner Christian Folin collected a pair of assists and Devan Dubnyk made 18 saves to boost his record to 13-2-1 since being acquired from Arizona.
Jason Spezza scored both goals for Dallas, which lost its third in a row following its second straight third-period meltdown as it surrendered four goals in the final 20 minutes of Saturday's 7-6 overtime loss to Detroit. Jhonas Enroth, who allowed seven goals against Minnesota while with Buffalo in Dubnyk's Wild debut, finished with 29 saves.
Trailing 1-0 after two periods, Minnesota tied it 1:40 into the third as Parise swept home a perfect backhand pass by Folin from along the left-wing boards and went ahead less than two minutes later, when Koivu forced a turnover and beat Enroth between the pads from the bottom of the left faceoff circle. Veilleux made it a two-goal advantage with 11:19 to play, shoveling home a rebound while surrounded by four defenders for his first goal since April 5.
Dumba buried a snap shot from the top of the right circle during a power play at 13:25 before Granlund and Parise turned it into a blowout. Spezza, who opened the scoring with a blast from the right circle while on a man advantage with 5:27 left in the second session, added a meaningless goal with 1:43 remaining.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Parise scored his 10th and 11th goals in 18 career games against Dallas. ... Spezza has netted five tallies in his last eight contests - a span during which he's amassed 12 points - while Stars captain Jamie Benn extended his point streak to seven games with an assist. ... The Wild, who were missing D Jared Spurgeon for a second straight game, had killed off 32 consecutive penalties since the All-Star break before Spezza's second-period goal.
Top Game Performances
| Dallas |
|
Minnesota |
|
Jason Spezza 2 |
Points |
Mikael Granlund 3 |
|
Jason Spezza 2 |
Goals |
Zach Parise 2 |
|
Jamie Benn 1 |
Assists |
Mikael Granlund 2 |
|
Jason Spezza 1 |
Power Play Goals |
Mathew Dumba 1 |
|
N/A |
Short Handed Goals |
N/A |
|
Jhonas Enroth .829 |
Save Percentage |
Devan Dubnyk .900 |
|
Jhonas Enroth 29 |
Saves |
Devan Dubnyk 18 |
Team Stats Summary
| Team |
Shots |
Goals |
Power Play |
Penalty Kill |
Penalty Mins |
Face Offs Won |
| Dallas
|
20 |
2 |
1-3 |
1-2 |
4 |
41 |
| Minnesota
|
35 |
6 |
1-2 |
2-3 |
6 |
31 |
Upcoming Games
-
Minnesota will play their next game at home against Edmonton. The Wild have a W/L % of .548 after a win and .500 after a loss.
-
Dallas will play their next game on the road against Winnipeg. The Stars have a W/L % of .556 after a win and .364 after a loss.
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