ST. PAUL, Minn — For the first time this series, a game needed beyond 60 minutes to be decided.
The Stars took a 2-1 lead in the first-round playoff series against the Minnesota Wild with a 4-3 double overtime win in Game 3 at Grand Casino Arena on Wednesday night.
Dallas scored three power play goals on the night, including one in the second overtime by Wyatt Johnston, which was the game-winner.
Dallas has now won two straight. Teams that lead a series 2-1 and start the series at home go on to win 74% of the time.
The Stars will have a chance to push Minnesota to the brink in St. Paul in Game 4 Saturday.
The Stars have scored six power play goals in three games this series, but Johnston’s goal just before 1 a.m. local time Thursday was certainly the biggest.
The Stars had their best chances past regulation in the second overtime period, including a Radek Faksa look at an open net and an Esa Lindell one-timer that barely missed.
But after Danila Yurov threw a puck over the glass for a delay of game penalty, the Stars finally were able to take advantage.
Johnston deflected Miro Heiskanen’s shot from the point to claim the win 92:08 into the game.
The forward had already broken Dallas’ franchise record for most power play goals in a regular season season and has managed to keep it up with two in the playoffs.
After giving up a goal on Minnesota’s first power play, Dallas’ penalty kill kept the Wild off the scoresheet for the rest of the game.
The Wild finished 1-for-7, going zero for their last six attempts in the second and third periods and overtime.
Minnesota had two power play chances in overtime. The first was after a Sam Steel tripping penalty. The Stars managed to kill off the penalty even with one of their penalty killers, Radek Faksa, without a stick for the majority of the two minutes.
Stars captain Jamie Benn then committed a hooking penalty with 51 seconds left in the first overtime period. But the Stars also managed to kill that penalty across two periods.
After allowing two Minnesota power play goals in the first game of the playoffs and three in their last regular-season meeting, the Stars have turned their special teams around.
They also did so with some of their penalty killers playing major minutes, like Miro Heiskanen, who played 41:58 and Esa Lindell, who played 30:16.
Through three games, the Stars have learned the Wild will spend their fair share of time in the penalty box. But when they’re able to bait them, they have to make them pay.
The Stars were inconsistent Thursday, but in the end, they did.
Dallas scored three total power play goals and two late — one from Matt Duchene in the third period and another from Johnston in overtime — to complete the comeback win. It was necessary after how their power play performed in the second period.
Late in the period, the Wild took three consecutive minors — two interference calls on Ryan Hartman and a delay of game penalty on Matt Boldy. The Stars were on the man advantage longer than a major penalty and spent 41 seconds with a two-man advantage but still couldn’t score.