Stars Back In Hunt After Shutout of Ducks
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DALLAS – It was the sort of performance Dallas Stars fans had been expecting from goaltender Kari Lehtonen since he was acquired in a February 2010 trade.
Lehtonen stopped all 37 shots he faced as Dallas handed the Anaheim Ducks a 3-0 defeat in Game 3 of their Western Conference first-round series on Monday night at American Airlines Center.
“He was under control. He made some great saves for us. He made some real timely saves. But he just looked real comfortable in net,” Stars head coach Lindy Ruff said of Lehtonen. “I’d like to see us show a little bit more composure with the puck at times, which led to some opportunities against, but [Lehtonen]’s play back there was a calming force for us.
After dropping the first two games of the series, the Stars were eagerly anticipating a return to American Airlines Center, a building where they won eight of their final 10 games during the regular season.
Dallas now trails Anaheim 2-1 in the best-of-seven series.
The Stars received goals from left winger and captain Jamie Benn, rookie right winger Valeri Nichushkin and center Ryan Garbutt in the victory.
It was the first career playoff shutout and victory for Lehtonen, who was 0-4-0 in his short playoff career heading into Game 3.
“At the age of 30, it was about time to get that first one,” Lehtonen said. “It was nice to be able to
be back there and help the team out. That’s what I have to keep doing.”
Dallas struck first when Benn scored his second goal of the playoffs 35 seconds before the first intermission.
Benn’s goal, which resulted from a rebound after Ducks goalie Frederik Andersen denied the initial effort from Dallas center Shawn Horcoff, came just 10 seconds after he left the penalty box following a penalty for hooking Anaheim center Kyle Palmieri.
Anaheim was down to five healthy defensemen early in the second period after veteran Stephane Robidas was upended in front of the Dallas net by Garbutt 42 second into the period.
Robidas, who played much of his career in Dallas before being traded to the Ducks in March, was unable to put any weight on his right foot and was helped off the ice by Ducks right winger Teemu Selanne and a member of the Anaheim medical staff.
During the second intermission, it was announced that Robidas had suffered a right leg injury and had been taken to a local hospital.
“Yeah, it’s a big loss for us,” Ducks defenseman Cam Fowler said of Robidas. “My heart just breaks for the guy. He was a big part of this team and was going to continue to play a huge role for us, so it’s a pretty big loss.”
The Stars went ahead 2-0 when Nichushkin fired a wrister through Andersen’s five-hole from the right point with 2:45 left before the second intermission. It was Nichushkin’s first career playoff goal.
Tempers flared late in the second period when Ducks center Ryan Getzlaf and Stars left winger Antoine Roussel had a confrontation in the Dallas end. Getzlaf received a minor penalty for roughing and Roussel was given a double-minor, also for roughing, for his role in the scrum.
Garbutt chipped in an insurance goal at 7:52 of the third period when he scored his second goal of the postseason by tapping in a rebound after a shot by center Cody Eakin was turned away by Andersen. Garbutt actually took the initial shot in the sequence after a pass from Roussel, a wrister from distance that was denied by Andersen.
However, Garbutt was waiting to pounce after Eakin’s shot was rebuffed by Andersen to make it 3-0.
The Stars prevailed despite being outshot 37-22 by the Ducks.
Andersen stopped 19 of 22 shots for Anaheim.
“He was fine for me,” Ducks head coach Bruce Boudreau said of Andersen’s performance. “He kept his calm.”
Game 4 is on Wednesday night in Dallas.
