Stars 4, Blues 1
DALLAS -- After a disappointing 5-1 home loss to the Edmonton Oilers on Thursday night, the Dallas Stars were intent on finishing a two-game homestand on a high note.
Mission accomplished.
The Stars rolled to a 4-1 victory over the St. Louis Blues on Sunday at American Airlines Center before 16,633 fans.
Dallas got a goal and two assists from Derek Roy. Erik Cole scored his first goal for the Stars since coming over in a trade with Montreal on Tuesday, and Loui Eriksson and Jaromir Jagr addec third-period goals.
Stars goalie Kari Lehtonen stopped 25 of the 26 shots he faced for his eighth win of the season.
The Blues struck first, taking a 1-0 lead when David Perron, who had two goals in a 4-3 win over the Stars in Dallas on Jan. 26, scored his seventh of the year just 4:20 into the game. After Dallas center Jamie Benn turned the puck over in his own end, Perron got the puck from David Backes, drew Lehtonen off the line and was able to tuck a 2-foot wrister into the left side of the net.
The Stars answered with Cole knocking in a 15-foot wrister at 15:59 for the equalizer. After St. Louis had two separate giveaways in its own zone, Antoine Roussel fed Cole by dropping the puck back and he converted in the low slot to make it 1-1.
With 1:40 remaining before the first intermission, Dallas took the lead for good when Roy collected a bad pass from the Blues' T.J. Oshie on the left boards, dashed toward the visiting goal and scored his third of the season when a 33-foot wrister slipped past St. Louis goaltender Brian Elliott, giving Dallas a two-goal edge.
St. Louis looked like it might have tied the score at 2 at 8:59 of the third period, but Blues rookie Adam Cracknell was ruled to have kicked the puck into the Dallas net. After a quick review, officials determined it was not a goal and the score remained 2-1.
Eriksson's seventh goal of the season, a 20-foot wrister from the edge of the right faceoff circle that beat Elliott through the five-hole, made it 3-1. Jordie Benn got the primary assist with a well-placed cross-ice pass to Eriksson. Even though the Dallas winger didn't strike the puck cleanly, it was still enough to sail under Elliott's pads.
Jagr then made it a 4-1 final when he knocked an 18-foot snap by Elliott just one minute before the final horn. Roy picked up the primary assist, capping a three-point day, Eriksson also assisted to cap his two-point performance.
Elliott, who was making his first start since Feb. 11, stopped just 23 of the 27 shots he faced in his sixth straight loss of the season.
Both teams return to the ice later in the week against the Kings. St. Louis will visit the Staples Center on Tuesday and Dallas will face the reigning Stanley Cup champions on Thursday.
NOTES: Blues right winger Jamie Langenbrunner, a member of the Stars' 1999 Stanley Cup championship team, was honored before the game for being a member of the Stars' 20th Anniversary Team. ... Stars head coach Glen Gulutzan shuffled his lines, moving wing Loui Eriksson up to the first line from the second line. Cole, who made his Dallas debut on Thursday, moved up to the second line from the third line while Stars captain Brenden Morrow, who had been a fixture in the second grouping, dropped down to the third line. ... With his first-period goal on Sunday, Perron now has three goals in two games against Dallas this season. Perron also had two goals in a 4-3 win over the Stars in Dallas on Jan. 26. ... Stars center Derek Roy's unassisted goal late in the opening period was his third of the season but first at home. Roy joined Dallas during the offseason from Buffalo in a trade for Steve Ott.
