AHL Report: Texas Stars punch ticket to Calder Cup Playoffs

The Texas Stars are headed to the 2018 Calder Cup Playoffs. The Stars rallied for a 4-3 win over Rockford Saturday to punch their ticket to the postseason for the seventh time in their nine-season history.
The Stars secured the spot by picking up four of six points last week, going 1-0-2 and pushing their points streak to four games (2-0-2).
"Our guys earned it," Texas coach Derek Laxdal told reporters. "Twenty-six overtime games in the regular season, grinding out points on the road and some big road trips. To clinch it with three games left and take a little bit of pressure off the group is outstanding. It says a lot about the guys we have.
"Give our guys a lot of credit; it's been a long year. Now, we are in the dance, and we want to move forward."

Texas, which has points in eight of the last 10 games (4-2-4), is 36-24-13 on the season and is in fourth place in the Pacific Division. They have three games left in the season before the AHL's postseason tournament.
Here's the latest on the AHL affiliate of the Dallas Stars.

Wednesday, April 4: Stockton 4, Texas 3 (OT)

Jason Dickinson scored two goals in his return to the Texas Stars after a stint in the NHL, but the Stars came up short against Stockton, falling 4-3 in overtime Wednesday in Cedar Park. Dickinson's second goal of the game gave Texas a 3-2 lead at 9:07 of the third period but Stockton tied it 85 seconds later and then won the game 14 seconds into overtime. Denis Gurianov also scored for Texas. Landon Bow stopped 25 of 29 shots.

Friday, April 6: Rockford 3, Texas 2 (SO)

The Texas Stars rallied for a point before falling in a shootout to Rockford Friday at H-E-B Center. Gavin Bayreuther's goal with 1:13 left in regulation forced overtime, but the IceHogs scored twice in the shootout, and only Travis Morin tallied for Texas. Brent Regner also scored in regulation for Texas. Landon Bow stopped 24 of 26 shots in regulation and overtime and three of five in the shootout.

Saturday, April 7: Texas 4, Rockford 3

The Stars rallied from a 3-1 deficit in the third period to top Rockford and clinch a berth in the AHL's Calder Cup Playoffs. Brian Flynn scored early in the third to cut the lead to 3-2, and Roope Hintz tied the game with 6:13 remaining. Joel L'Esperance's first AHL goal with 2:54 left snapped the tie and lifted Texas to the 4-3 victory. Brent Regner also scored for Texas, and Landon Bow stopped 22 of 25 shots.
"One word: resilience," Texas coach Derek Laxdal told media after Saturday's game. "Our guys have been resilient all year. You saw that Friday night, battling back to get a point and then tonight, being down 3-1 going into the third period."

Notes: Texas signs RW Calderone to ATO

Texas Lineup

Here is the Texas lineup from the last game.
Curtis McKenzie - Justin Dowling - Brian Flynn
Travis Morin - Roope Hintz - Denis Gurianov
Sheldon Dries - Jason Dickinson - Colin Markison
Samuel Laberge - Joel L'Esperance - Robbie Payne
Gavin Bayreuther - Brent Regner
Andrew Bodnarchuk - Reece Scarlett
Scott Hanna - Niklas Hansson
Landon Bow
Philippe Desrosiers

Week Ahead

Wed., Apr. 11, Grand Rapids at Texas, 7:30 p.m.
Fri., Apr. 13, Texas at San Antonio, 7:30 p.m.
Sat., Apr. 14, San Antonio at Texas, 7:00 p.m.

#

Transactions

4/10: LW Remi Elie assigned to Texas (AHL) from Dallas (NHL)
4/9: Texas (AHL) signed RW Tony Calderone to an ATO
4/9: G Philippe Desrosiers assigned to Idaho (ECHL) from Texas (AHL)
4/8: G Mike McKenna assigned to Texas (AHL) from Dallas (NHL)
4/8: D Dillon Heatherington assigned to Texas (AHL) from Dallas (NHL)

Idaho Steelheads

The Idaho Steelheads won two of three games last week to finish the regular season 44-20-8 on the season and in second place in the ECHL's Mountain Division. The Steelheads will play the Allen Americans, who finished third in the Mountain Division, in the first round of the playoffs, which gets underway Friday in Boise.
Here is the schedule for the first-round series between the Steelheads and Americans (all times CT):
Game 1: Allen Americans @ Idaho Steelheads - Friday, April 13th, 8:10 p.m. - CenturyLink Arena
Game 2:Allen Americans @ Idaho Steelheads - Saturday, April 14th, 8:10 p.m. - CenturyLink Arena
Game 3: Idaho Steelheads @ Allen Americans - Wednesday, April 18th, 7:05 p.m. - Allen Event Center
Game 4:Idaho Steelheads @ Allen Americans - Friday, April 20th, 7:05 p.m. - Allen Event Center
Game 5:Idaho Steelheads @ Allen Americans - Sunday, April 22nd, 6:05 p.m. - Allen Event Center\
Game 6:Allen Americans @ Idaho Steelheads - Tuesday, April 24th, 8:10 p.m. - CenturyLink Arena\
Game 7:Allen Americans @ Idaho Steelheads - Wednesday, April 25th, 8:10 p.m. - CenturyLink Arena\
\if necessary
This story was not subject to the approval of the National Hockey League or Dallas Stars Hockey Club.
Mark Stepneski is an independent writer whose posts on DallasStars.com reflect his own opinions and do not represent official statements from the Dallas Stars. You can follow him on Twitter @StarsInsideEdge.