DALLAS — Tyler Seguin and the Dallas Stars are making the Minnesota Wild pay for all of those penalties, and now have the series lead for the first time.
The Stars took advantage early in Game 5, and went on to a 4-0 victory Tuesday night.
Seguin scored his fourth power-play of the series only 2:22 into the game, and just eight seconds after Wild forward Marcus Foligno’s five-minute major penalty and game misconduct for a knee-on-knee hit on Radek Faksa.
“Minnesota is one of the most penalized teams in the league, we knew we were going to get power plays,” Stars coach Pete DeBoer said. “So the goal was to make them pay for it. And we’re doing that, and we’ve got to keep doing that.”
Jason Robertson also had a power-play goal in the first period, and like Seguin also had an assist. Roope Hintz had three assists and now has the highest-scoring playoff series ever for a Dallas player, while Jake Oettinger stopped 27 shots for his second career postseason shutout — and the first by any goalie this postseason.
Faksa remained face down on the ice after the collision with Foligno near the blue line, which came right after the Stars center had knocked the puck out of the air with his hand. Faksa had to be helped off the ice once he got up, but returned to the game midway through the first period.
“I’m keeping my lane, it’s unfortunate we both hit in that leg area. I wouldn’t say it’s a knee-on-knee, I hit him in the upper area,” Foligno said. "He’s rotating out of the way, I don’t move my leg at all. I stay my course. That’s what I see. If you want to give me a penalty, for sure. But a five-minute and a game misconduct ... I just don’t agree with that part.”
Wild coach Dean Evason said his group had watched the replay several times, and that “if anything, we felt their guy moved and our guy did not.”
Officials also reviewed the play, upholding the major penalty and issuing the game misconduct after a lengthy look at replays.
“It took some life out of us for sure,” Evason said.
Mason Marchment scored early in the second period and Ty Dellandrea added an empty-netter with 3:57 left for the Stars, who will try to close out the first-round playoff series Friday night in Game 6 at Minnesota. The seventh game, if needed, would be Sunday in Dallas.
Seguin put Dallas ahead to stay with his second-effort tally on the rebound of a shot by Robertson, who then made it 2-0 midway through the first on his 35-foot wrister through the legs of Filip Gustavsson. It was the second goal and fourth assist of the series for Robertson, who became the first 100-point scorer for Dallas this season.
Gustavsson, Minnesota's own 24-year-old goalie, has started the last three games since three-time Stanley Cup champion Marc-Andre Fleury was in net for Game 2 when Dallas evened the series with a 7-3 win. Gustavsson stopped 21 shots Tuesday.
With Joe Pavelski in concussion protocol since taking a big hit in Game 1, Seguin has moved up to the top line with Robertson and Hintz, and had a bigger role on the power play. Seguin, who played in his 100th career playoff game, is the only Stars player with a Stanley Cup title — that was as a 19-year-old rookie with Boston in 2011.
The now 31-year-old Seguin is the first player in Stars franchise history with four power-play goals in a single playoff series. The last time a Dallas player had as many in a playoff year was in 2008, when Mike Modano had five and Brenden Morrow four.
Seguin had two power-play goals in the Stars’ 3-2 victory in Game 4 on Sunday night that evened the series. Both of those also came after Foligno penalties. Dallas has nine power-play goals in the series.
Hintz also scored a goal in the series opener, then had a hat trick with an assist in Game 2. His 11 points (four goals, seven assists) are the most in a single playoff series for Dallas, his assist on Marchment’s goal snapping his tie with Mike Modano, Sergei Zubov and Jamie Benn.
Minnesota was 0 for 3 with a man-advantage in Game 5, with all of its power plays in the second period. Oettinger stopped nine shots on the first two Wild power plays in quick succession.
“He sure doesn’t look like a 24-year-old goalie. He’s doing some some special things,” DeBoer said. “Being at this stage in the career he’s at, when you look at the real good goalies over their history, not many of them at his age are taking the load that he’s taking and delivering like he’s doing."
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