Minnesota Wild left wing Marcus Foligno celebrates his goal against the Dallas Stars during the third period of Game 4 in the first round of the NHL Stanley Cup playoffs Saturday, April 25, 2026, in St. Paul, Minn.
Matt Krohn/AP
ST. PAUL, Minn. — The Stars return to Dallas on even footing after splitting with Minnesota at Grand Casino Arena.
The Stars fell 3-2 in overtime in Game 4 on Saturday afternoon at Grand Casino Arena in its first-round playoff series against the Wild.
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Despite holding a 2-1 lead late in regulation, the Wild managed to come back and even the series, ensuring it returns to St. Paul for a Game 6.
Here are five thoughts from the Stars’ Game 4 defeat:
Wild pull off comeback late
The Stars were in control until the final six minutes of regulation.
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Dallas held a 2-1 lead after a pair of power play goals, but the Wild managed to send the game to overtime on a late goal by Marcus Foligno with 5:20 remaining.
There, the Wild controlled play for the entire period before Matt Boldy deflected in a shot by Jared Spurgeon to win with less than 30 seconds remaining in the first overtime period.
Boldy also put one in the net earlier in the overtime period, but it was called off for illegally kicking the puck into the net.
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The Stars also had a chance late in regulation to take a 3-1 lead before the Wild tied the score. A loose puck in the crease nearly crossed the goal line before the Wild managed to clear it.
Both games in St. Paul required extra time to decide a winner, and each team managed to earn one win, showing just how tight the margins in the series are.
The 2-2 series tie sets up a critical Game 5 at American Airlines Center at 7 p.m. Tuesday. Teams that lead 3-2 win the series 79.5% of the time.
The Stars can win the series if they win their last two games on home ice.
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Special teams advantage remains in the Stars’ favor
Yet again, the Wild had no answer for the Stars on either special teams.
The Stars scored both goals on the power play, going a perfect 2-for-2 with goals from Jason Robertson and Miro Heiskanen. Dallas has scored eight power play goals in four games this series.
The Stars’ power play has been patient and poised. Five of their eight goals on the man-advantage were on the road.
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Meanwhile, their penalty kill has been just as effective the last two games. Minnesota went 0 for 4 on the power play Saturday after not scoring on its last six power plays in Game 3.
That included consecutive penalties on the Stars in the first period that effectively gave the Wild four straight minutes of power play time.
The Wild were without top-line forward Mats Zuccarello, who also plays on Minnesota’s top power play unit, for the third straight game. Since his departure from the series, the Wild haven’t been able to get anything going on the man advantage.
The man-advantage has been enough for the Stars to win in their last two games, but it wasn’t Saturday. Dallas will need some 5-on-5 scoring to ensure this series doesn’t slip away.
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Jason Robertson scores in fourth straight game
Robertson has been Dallas’ most consistent player offensively this series, scoring in all four of the Stars’ games.
Dating to the end of last season’s playoff run, Robertson has goals in seven straight postseason games for the Stars.
He scored on the Stars’ first power play of the night in the first period, collecting a rebound from Matt Duchene and putting the puck in the back of the net.
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Despite averaging just .79 points per game in his playoff career ahead of this series, he is averaging 1.5 points and a goal per game this postseason.
Miro Heiskanen responds from fluky goal with goal of his own
The Wild nearly scored twice off Heiskanen early in Saturday’s game.
Minnesota scored a first-period goal when defenseman Brock Faber shot a puck from the point that hit Heiskanen’s glove and awkwardly bounced past Stars goalie Jake Oettinger.
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Then, in the second period while on the power play, Minnesota scored when a puck was directed in by Heiskanen. But officials called the goal off, saying Wild forward Joel Eriksson Ek pushed Heiskanen into the net.
The Stars defenseman, who largely couldn’t control either early bounce, scored a redeeming goal in the final minute of the second period, with a snipe from the blue line on the power play to give Dallas a 2-1 lead heading into the third.
Heiskanen, who was questionable ahead of the series with an injury, has four points in four games.
Both goalies tested in another lengthy contest
Oettinger and Jesper Wallstedt both had standout performances in Game 4.
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In the overtime period, Minnesota came out hot.
The Wild had several point-blank looks, some into an open net, but Oettinger made sprawling save after sprawling save to keep his team in it.
The Stars’ netminder stopped 40 of 43 shots he faced, including 11 in the overtime period, before the Wild ultimately scored.
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Since allowing five goals in Game 1, Oettinger has given up just seven goals in the three games since.
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The defense in front of him was solid as well, especially considering it had to play roughly half the game shorthanded. Defenseman Nils Lundkvist left the game early after getting kicked in the head with a skate and never returned.
Wallstedt didn’t have it much easier, facing 45 Stars shots, including a whopping 17 in the second period. He made 43 saves in the win, including nine in the overtime period.