Dallas Stars wallop Carolina Hurricanes to end 4-game skid

Patrick Eaves scored two goals and the Dallas Stars beat the Carolina Hurricanes 5-2 on Saturday to end a season-long four-game losing streak.

His first goal was one of three in the first 6:11 against Carolina goalie Cam Ward. In the second period, Eaves scored his career-high 21st goal, his 11th on the power play this season.

Esa Lindell and Curtis McKenzie added unassisted goals in the first period. Adam Cracknell scored midway through the third.

Sebastian Aho scored Carolina’s first goal in the second period, and Justin Faulk put in a rebound on the power play in the third.

Ward and Dallas goalie Kari Lehtonen each made 22 saves.

Jamie Benn had two assists for the Stars. McKenzie assisted on Cracknell’s goal for his first career two-point game.

Elias Lindholm and Jordan Staal each assisted on both Hurricanes goals. Carolina has lost two in a row.

Lindell’s goal came 51 seconds into the game. Off a faceoff in the Dallas end, he poked the puck away from Carolina’s Jaccob Slavin. Lindell carried the puck on a 2-on-1 break with Antoine Roussel and shot past Ward from the right faceoff circle.

Benn set up Eaves’ goal at 5:49. The Stars’ captain dumped the puck into the left corner, but it bounced toward the front of the goal. Cody Eakin retrieved it and sent a backhand pass to Eaves in the slot.

Just 22 seconds later, McKenzie skated in on another 2-on-1. His pass attempt from the left side went off the stick of Hurricanes defenseman Matt Tennyson and into the net.

Dallas had most of the chances in the first period, but each team finished with nine shots on goal.

Aho scored Carolina’s first goal at 5:06 of the second period. Lindholm sent a pass from the left corner to the left circle, and Aho one-timed the puck past Lehtonen.

Eaves’ second goal of the game and 21st of the season was on the power play at 17:09. Radek Faksa backhanded a pass from behind the net to Eaves in the slot, and he put the puck high inside the left goalpost.

Briefly

▪ Eaves was playing in his 600th NHL game.

▪ The Stars announced a series of events next season celebrating 25 years of NHL hockey in Dallas. The highlight will be retiring the number 26 of Jere Lehtinen, a three-time Frank Selke Trophy winner as the NHL’s top defenseman.

▪ Benn has nine points (five goals, four assists) in the last six games.

▪ Carolina, which entered the game with the NHL’s top-ranked penalty-killing unit, allowed one goal on four Dallas power plays.

▪ Cracknell’s goal was his career-high seventh.

Up next

Hurricanes: After five days off, they’ll begin a five-game homestand on Friday vs. Colorado.

Stars: Begin a three-game trip on Sunday at Nashville.

This story was originally published February 11, 2017 at 4:01 PM with the headline "Dallas Stars wallop Carolina Hurricanes to end 4-game skid."