Stars’ goalie Scott Wedgewood was a King Slayer on Thursday.
For the second time this season, this time in a shutout on Thursday, the Stars’ backup goalie defeated Los Angeles.
The win came one night after a disastrous affair on Wednesday when the team blew a 3-0 lead to fall to lowly San Jose 5-3.
Dallas has skated to a record of 27-23-7, good for 61 points and a two-point lead for first place in the Central.
WHAT TO KNOW
Wedgewood defended all 34 shots he faced in beating the Kings after stopping 30 of 32 against LA in a 3-2 win on January 3.
The Stars got two first-period goals from Tyler Seguin as he continues to skate on Dallas’ top line, with Roope Hintz still on the mend after an upper-body injury.
Dallas defenseman Esa Lindell also rattled a goal home in the opening frame. Team captain Jamie Benn earned an assist on the play after he sucked three defenders along the right board near the King’s blue before shoveling a no-look pass behind his back to Wyatt Johnston.
Johnson quickly saw Lindell charging in from his left and hit him on the stick with a pass that Lindell knocked home. The goal gave Dallas a 3-0 lead, and the Stars never looked back. Benn and Johnston each earned assists.
BY THE NUMBERS
Jason Robertson added to his team-leading goal count with his 31st of the year in the second period. Tyler Seguin and Miro Heiskanen each tallied assists on the goal.
Thursday night was the second straight game the Stars scored three goals in the first period.
Only four games are left until the all-star weekend in Sunrise, Florida. All the games are at home for Dallas at the American Airlines Center.
WHAT THEY SAID
“I don’t dwell on it,” Scott Wedgewood said of his last outing, a Z-Z pasting by Calgary, before beating L.A. “I think I’m a hard worker, and I think that’s kind of where my career has kind of been, you know, stable … So, you know, nice bounce back. Obviously, that’s better than anticipated.”
“I’ve gotten bigger at taking naps and actually taking baths,” Wedgewood said of his routine during a hectic road schedule as the team’s backup goalie. “It’s something I haven’t really gotten used to, and some hotels don’t have it, but. But just, you know, you’re skating every day.”
“That’s character, right?” Dallas coach Peter DeBoer said of Wedgewood coming off the bench. “You sit there. We didn’t play well in front of him last outing, and I think the guys wanted to fix that tonight and despite the circumstance of the back-to-back and a tough team coming off a tough loss last night, I thought the guys worked hard for him.”
NEXT UP
The Stars start a four-game home stand on Saturday, January 21, beginning at 7 p.m. C.T., against the Coyotes (14-26-5, 33 points).