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Ryan S. ClarkApr 21, 2026, 02:44 AM ET<\/p>\n
Close<\/a>Ryan S. Clark is an NHL reporter for ESPN.<\/p>\n Multiple Authors<\/p>\n DALLAS — All the issues that plagued the Dallas Stars<\/a> at the start of playoffs became the items that aided them in a series-tying 4-2 win<\/a> Monday night against the Minnesota Wild<\/a>.<\/p>\n The Stars opened the Western Conference first-round series with a 6-1 loss Saturday in which they struggled to protect Jake Oettinger<\/a>, kill penalties and generate the sort of scoring chances that led to goals.<\/p>\n How they tied the series Monday was by insulating Oettinger, being perfect in a penalty-riddled game, while also having Wyatt Johnston<\/a> and Jason Robertson<\/a> turn those chances into important goals.<\/p>\n “I knew our response was going to be better,” said Robertson, who scored the game-winning goal. “Our compete was going to be higher, our battles were going to be higher, and our guys would be sharper. It’s about the desperation at this time of year. You don’t want to go down in a series and not find that desperation.”<\/p>\n Editor’s Picks 1 Related<\/p>\n Minnesota found its opening in Game 1 by drawing penalties that it converted into three power-play goals. The Wild once again drew penalties in Game 2 — it’s just the Stars made adjustments that allowed them to go perfect the four times Minnesota went on the power play.<\/p>\n It started with the personnel adjustments Dallas coach Glen Gulutzan made, inserting forward Arttu Hyry<\/a> — who didn’t play in Game 1 — and having him be an integral part of the penalty kill. Then, the Stars remained active any time the Wild went on the extra-skater advantage.<\/p>\n “I thought we got clears when we needed to,” Stars forward Colin Blackwell<\/a> said. “That’s the biggest thing. We did a really good job on the face offs, and it wasn’t necessarily working harder, it was maybe working a little bit smarter and that’s with some of the adjustments that’s we maybe did. But that goes back to the identity of working hard.”<\/p>\n Gulutzan also had thoughts on how his PK unit performed.<\/p>\n “Well, we needed the reps,” Gulutzan deadpanned. “No, we have to be disciplined. We talked about playing whistle-to-whistle. We put in six penalty killers, guys that have done it for us but one of the keys is as this goes longer, everything’s going to get together, and you have to have more discipline than we did tonight.”<\/p>\n That was the first phase. How Oettinger played along with the support he received was the second phase in their comeback plan.<\/p>\n Wild forward Matthew Boldy<\/a> was the recipient of a backdoor pass that gave him a point-blank shot on net that Oettinger swallowed, with Johnston scoring the game’s first goal 14 seconds later with 11:02 remaining in the first.<\/p>\n The Wild would eventually get their goal when Brock Faber<\/a> got to the slot and snuck one past Oettinger to tie the game with 8:27 left. They tried to get one more with a pass that split the Stars defense and allowed Boldy to get a breakaway, only to be denied by Oettinger, who stopped 11 of the 12 first-period shots he faced.<\/p>\n “He’s obviously one of the best players in the league,” Oettinger said of Boldy, his U.S. Olympic teammate. “Super skilled and talented. I was gabble I was able to step up and make a couple of nice saves on him.”<\/p>\n Oettinger stopping 28 of the 30 shots he faced provided the balance the Stars needed for the third phase of their comeback by having the necessary comfort to attack whenever they were in the Wild’s zone.<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/r1647317_1296x1296_1-1.jpg&w=130&h=130&scale=crop&location=center.jpeg\")
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