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Colorado Avalanche left wing Gabriel Landeskog celebrates the game tying goal scored by right wing Valeri Nichushkin against Dallas Stars goaltender Jake Oettinger as defenseman Thomas Harley looks on (Jerome Miron-Imagn Images)

3 Takeaways From Stars’ Heartbreaking OT Loss to Avalanche

Originally posted on The Hockey Writers | By Marc Sautter | Last updated Mar 7, 2026 10:15 AM ET

Valeri Nichushkin scored with 15 seconds left in the third period for the Colorado Avalanche to push the game to overtime and scored the winner in the shootout to snap the Dallas Stars‘ 10-game winning streak and give the Avalanche the 5-4 win.

Cale Makar, Nathan MacKinnon, and Martin Necas were the other goal scorers for the Avalanche. Mackenzie Blackwood made just seven saves on 11 shots before giving up the crease to Scott Wedgewood, who stopped all 10 shots he faced.

Miro Heiskanen, Wyatt Johnston, Justin Hryckowian, and Jamie Benn scored for the Stars, while Jake Oettinger made 25 saves on 29 shots.

The Central Division Will Represent the Western Conference

Friday night’s contest lived up to the hype and was maybe the best game of the season. I watch every Dallas game and most of Colorado’s games, so maybe I’m biased, but this was a terrific hockey game. Watching it, you can’t help but look ahead to the Stanley Cup Playoffs. These two teams have faced off in each of the last two postseasons, and the Stars have been the victors each time. With the current playoff format, it feels inevitable that they will meet again, although it’s not guaranteed.

The current format has been a hot topic for fans ever since it was introduced, and generally speaking, I’m personally not a fan. In case you’re unaware, the first-seeded team in each division plays one of the two wild-card teams, while the second- and third-place divisional teams play each other. This format is frustrating most seasons, but it will be even more so this spring.

The Avalanche are currently first in the Central Division with 93 points, while the Stars are second with 86 points, and the Minnesota Wild are third with 84 points. Not only are they the top three teams of their division, but they are also the top three teams in the Western Conference and three of the top four teams in the entire NHL. It is an absolute shame that two of these teams will play in the first round, with the winner playing the remaining team in the second round.

If the Stars and Avalanche do play each other for the third straight season, it will almost certainly be in the second round, and as much as I hate that it won’t be in the Conference Final, it is going to be one of the best rounds of the entire postseason, as it has been (in my opinion) the last two years.

The good thing that has come of this format, by design, is the rivalry that it has formed. It is clear when watching these games that these two teams hate each other. The Wild are a really good hockey team, and I mean no disrespect, but I really hope that we see this matchup again in a few months.

Power Play Keeps on Chugging

The second-best power play in the NHL (29.9%) stayed hot on Friday, going 1-for-4 with the man advantage. The Stars have now scored a power-play goal in seven straight games thanks to Heiskanen’s tally in the first period.

If you’re the Stars, sure, you would like to jump the Avalanche and win the division. But big picture, every day is about fine-tuning your game for the playoffs. The margins are razor-thin at 5-on-5 come playoff time, which makes the special teams that much more important than they are in the regular season.

As I mentioned, the Stars are second in the NHL on the power play and are 12th on the penalty kill at 80.1%. The penalty kill has been a staple for the Stars for years now, but this season, it’s the power play that has taken center stage.

It is actually pretty crazy how productive this team has been while up a man this season. Wyatt Johnston (33 points), Jason Robertson (31 points), and Mikko Rantanen (30 points) are all in the top six in power-play points league-wide. To show what kind of company they keep, Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl are first and second, respectively.

Another Third-Period Lead Blown

Before the Olympic break, it felt like the Stars were blowing third-period leads every night. In four of their six wins before the break, the Stars had a lead in the third and found themself tied before the period was over. They ended up winning those games, some of them in regulation, but it’s a dangerous game.

The Stars were up 4-2 in the second period before Necas cut the lead to 4-3 at 8:06 of the middle frame. Dallas then held onto a one-goal lead for the entire third period before surrendering the game-tying goal with just 15 seconds left.

When it comes to overtime between two teams that are loaded like the Avs and Stars, all bets are off, and it ended up biting Dallas in the end.

Up Next

The Stars are about to embark on an insane stretch of six games in 11 nights, starting with the Chicago Blackhawks on Sunday night at American Airlines Center. The good news for the Stars is that the first five games are all at home, where they have an 18-7-4 record.