Acting Burish Not being one to peruse the pre-game comments of the Dallas Stars, I don't know if anyone went to the mat and said last night's game at the Phoenix Coyotes as a huge game.
But it was a huge game.
At stake was the possibility of the playoffs, seeding and simply keeping pace. Maybe also ekeing out a road win. Just maybe.
The Stars beat the Coyotes, 3-2, and it was indeed a big win.
The Stars moved from the eighth seed to the seventh seed. However, they pulled to within two points of the Coyotes for the fourth seed. The Western Conference is a slugfest. Still, the Stars are a mere three points out of the 11th seed and sitting at home in April and May.
It wasn't easy. Much like the Dallas Mavericks, the Stars like the drama. Up 2-0 in the third period, they allowed two quick goals late. Thanks to a penalty and some gritty work on the boards, the Stars scored a power-play goal with five seconds left for the two points.
You love the work. Watch the play and the goals and you wonder why the Stars aren't winning more. Then you watch them continuously give up late leads due to lame-brained defensive miscues and you often wonder why they aren't worse.
Looking back, this game might prove to be some kind of hinge game, where the season turned around and united this team toward higher goals. Or it might be another brick in the wall of why this team is flawed.
For the record, the Stars are 3-0-1 since Alex Goligosky was traded for. He's posted a +3 in that timeframe.
