Tuesday night’s 5-3 loss to the Montreal Canadians marks the Dallas Stars‘ third loss in as many attempts, dropping their record to just over .500 at 18-16-2. With only 38 points the team now falls near the bottom of the standing in the Central Division.
“There are a lot of positives,” Stars’ head coach Rich Bowness said after Tuesday’s night’s loss. “We had 111 shot attempts; we certainly haven’t done that in a long time. We had 30 scoring chances; we haven’t done that in a long time. The mistakes we made ended up in the back of our net because it was bad puck management. It’s as simple as that.”
Bowness said the poor puck handling at the blue lines hampered them. The Stars gave up two shorthanded goals, the first they allowed on the year.
He also added that when the Stars came into the third period on a power play (the penalty came at the tail-end of the second period) but gave up the second shorthanded goal, the tables turned for his team.
“That is shooting yourself in the foot. It’s as simple as that,” Bowness said. “The power play has to be better than that…a whole lot better.”
The loss to the Canadians comes on the heels of consecutive road losses to Florida (7-1) and Tampa Bay (3-1). Next, the Dallas Stars head out on a four-game road trip, playing Buffalo, Detroit, Philadelphia, and New Jersey.
The Canadians came into the contest at the American Airlines Center with one of the worst records in the league but were able to stymie the Stars on 6 of 7 power plays and added the two shorthanded goals in the win.
Dallas second-year star Jason Robertson missed his second consecutive game due to a lower-body injury but was at the morning skate-around with his teammates earlier in the day.
Stars goaltender Jake Oettinger had a rough night and was pulled for the second straight start.
“That’s hockey, and that’s goaltending; it’s not always going to be easy,” Oettinger said after the game. “I want to be a big part of this team and help this team win, and I know I can do that. No matter what happens out there, I believe in myself, and I know I can help this team win.”
Oettinger’s record on the season drops to 9-4-0 after the loss.
The Stars will start their four-game road swing in Buffalo tonight, Thursday, January 20.
