Heika’s Take: Stars navigate sloppy game to secure overtime win against Ducks

The past few games have been a bit of a challenge for the Stars.

They were outplayed in a high-stakes game in Winnipeg on Friday, took way too many penalties in a 4-3 OT loss in Colorado on Sunday, and fell behind the Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday at American Airlines Center.

But as the lads in Victory Green slumped into the dressing room for the second intermission after an unfortunate penalty shot goal against, Stars coach Pete DeBoer had a message for his troops.

“My message was I felt our group was getting frustrated with the officiating and we needed to park that,” DeBoer said. “So stop [griping] about it and play.”

Dallas did just that, tying the game on a Thomas Harley goal in the third period and then winning it in overtime, 4-3, on Mikael Granlund’s second goal of the game. It was both a relief and a bit of a statement from a team that is still attempting to congeal.

“It was huge,” said center Roope Hintz, who helped set up the goal in overtime. “You can’t worry about that stuff too much, so we tried to find a way. Sometimes, you need to work harder. It was big we got the win tonight.”

The Stars have had a significant amount of injuries this season and still are without Tyler Seguin (hip) and Miro Heiskanen (knee). Because of that, they have had to reinvent themselves at different times throughout the 2024-25 campaign. In addition to the players within having to adjust, several newcomers have caused ripples throughout the lineup. Both Granlund and Cody Ceci were added on Feb. 1 in a trade with San Jose, and both are still finding their respective places in the system. Mikko Rantanen was acquired in a trade with Carolina at the trade deadline on March 7, and he was playing his first home game as a member of the Stars on Tuesday.

Mix into that formula the losses to their two closest Central Division rivals, and the need for a strong performance against the 29-31-7 Ducks was crucial. Dallas showed that focus early, outshooting Anaheim 9-2 in the opening period and taking a 1-0 lead on a Wyatt Johnston power play goal.

“We did some good things,” DeBoer said. “I thought early, the first half of that game, we could have had four or five goals, missed some really good looks.”

Anaheim coach Greg Cronin was happy his team was able to hang in and then fight back against the Stars, who have had one of the best records in the NHL since Jan. 1.

“I’ll say the first 32 minutes Dallas controlled the play,” Cronin said. “We got a big boost from the special teams. Couple of big kills and then a powerplay score and then had some zone time. I think that gave us some energy.”

Anaheim bounced back to tie things up two minutes into the second period, and Dallas then regained the lead two minutes later on a beautiful Granlund shot off a pretty pass from Matt Duchene. That’s when the game got a bit crazy. Each team took two penalties and Leo Carlsson scored for Anaheim on a two-man advantage 13 minutes into the second. The goal was originally called off for goaltender interference, but the Ducks challenged the call and had it overturned to keep the score 2-2.

The Stars were already upset with an interference penalty call on Mason Marchment, and the long delay for the appeal on Anaheim’s tying goal didn’t help. Then, in the final minute of the period, Stars forward Oskar Bäck was called for a slash and Carlsson was given a penalty shot.

Fans rained down boos on the call, but Carlsson converted and Anaheim exited the second period with a 3-2 lead.

It was a crucial moment for the Stars, who were outshot 16-15 in the second period. There was a need for intensity and patience, and Dallas toed that line pretty well. Anaheim had a 6-4 lead in shots on goal in the third period, but the Stars came up with the big goal.

Captain Jamie Benn circled behind the net and found Harley crashing down the slot. Harley whipped in his 13th goal of the season for a 3-3 tie.

“It’s big for us,” Harley said. “We knew that if we played our best, five-on-five, we would come out on top in this game. We stuck to it in the third period. We’re a veteran team in here. We know that if we play our game, we’re going to have a chance to win every game. We’ve been down before. It’s nothing new. We've just got to keep working.”

The game went to overtime, and Dallas managed the extra period with better focus and execution. Hintz found Harley driving to the net, and Granlund swooped in to put the rebound of a Harley shot in for the game-winner. It was a big moment for a Stars team that is now 42-21-3 (89 points) and four points up on Colorado for second in the Central Division. They are also nine points back of Winnipeg for first with two games in hand.

“Patience is a big thing in overtime,” Granlund said. “You just try to find your spots to score.”

Now, the Stars can continue to find that happy place in a four-game homestand. They have 15 games remaining and aspire to use them to smooth out some rough spots.

“You’re in the home stretch here,” DeBoer said. “We want to be playing well, individually and collectively, we want to be feeling good about ourselves. It’s an important time of the year.”

This story was not subject to the approval of the National Hockey League or Dallas Stars Hockey Club.

Mike Heika is a Senior Staff Writer for DallasStars.com and has covered the Stars since 1994. Follow him on X @MikeHeika.