Stars continue road dominance with Game 3 win over Avalanche
The Dallas Stars had more wins on the road than any other team in the Western Conference during the regular season. On Saturday night, they proved why they're so tough away from home, defeating the Colorado Avalanche in an impressive Game 3 victory.
Dallas ultimately won 4-1 after tallying two empty-netters late, but Tyler Seguin's goal at 15:13 of the second period to break a 1-1 tie was the real turning point. From there, the Stars protected their net and played a disciplined, tight-checking system, frustrating the Avs at every turn.
Colorado had chances early on to jump ahead of Dallas, which might have resulted in a style of game that was more their speed. Instead, after the Avalanche failed to capitalize on a flurry of chances early, including several power-play opportunities, the Stars gained the lead, allowing them to dictate the play the rest of the way.
The Avalanche finished 0-for-3 on the man advantage despite having weapons like Valeri Nichushkin, Mikko Rantanen, Cale Makar and Nathan MacKinnon. Meanwhile, when the stakes were the highest, they simply couldn't penetrate the Stars' defensive structure, managing only seven third-period shots.
The Stars' strategy after gaining the lead wasn't pretty, but it was effective. By sagging back, they created a stronghold, keeping dangerous chances at a minimum in front of netminder Jake Oettinger, who was fantastic early in Game 3, ending the night with 28 saves.
After splitting the first two games of the series at home, winning at least one game on the road was a must for the Stars. They immediately took care of that piece of business, creating an opportunity to head back to Dallas with a chance to end the series if they can put together a similar effort to Saturday's in Game 4.
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