Khudobin stops 21 shots as Stars beat Predators
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Anton Khudobin made 21 saves to lead the Dallas Stars to a 4-1 victory over the Nashville Predators on Thursday night.
Esa Lindell, Jason Robertson, Jamie Benn and Miro Heiskanen scored for Dallas, which snapped a three-game losing streak. Joe Pavelski had two assists.
Colton Sissons had the lone goal for the Predators, who snapped a six-game winning streak. Juuse Saros had 27 saves while ending his four-game win streak.
Khudobin wasn't tested often, but came up with his best stop in the first when he denied an attempt from Nashville's Ryan Johansen while the Predators were on a power play.
Lindell scored the game’s first goal at 2:39 of the opening period.
From the left side, Blake Comeau sent a pass to Lindell at the top of the left circle. There, Comeau skated toward the slot and shook off Predators forward Rocco Grimaldi before firing a quick snap shot that beat Saros high to the glove side.
Sissons tied it at 16:21 of the first.
Yakov Trenin outbattled two Stars in the left corner before finding Sissons in the left circle. Sissons cut to the low slot and beat Khudobin with a wrist shot high to the glove side.
Robertson made it 2-1 at 8:49 of the second. Roope Hintz carried the puck into the Nashville zone on the right side and then moved across the slot into the left circle. There, he slid a pass Robertson all alone at the right post where he had an easy slam dunk for his third goal in as many games.
Benn’s sixth of the season came on a power play at 1:41 of the third. Denis Gurianov sent the puck from the right circle in front, where it caromed off of the skate of Predators defenseman Dante Fabbro and then off of Benn and by Saros.
Heiskanen added an empty-net goal late in the third.
POWER PLAY PROWESS
Dallas was 1 for 2 on the power play. In six games played against the Predators this season, the Stars are 11 for 20 on the man advantage, a 55.0% success rate.
The Stars entered Thursday with the NHL’s 7th best power play at 24.1%
ROOKIE STILL SCORING
Coming off of a hot March where his 11 assists and 16 points led all NHL rookies, Robertson has scored a goal in three-straight games. It is the longest goal scoring streak of his young career. It matches the longest scoring streak by a Stars rookie since the club relocated to Dallas. Gurianov was the last Dallas rookie to score in three straight, doing so in Feb. 2020.
HANLEY OUT
Stars defenseman Joel Hanley played just 4:15 of the first period and Dallas announced after the first that he would not return to the game due to a lower-body injury.
UP NEXT
Stars: At Carolina for a back-to-back set with the Hurricanes Saturday and Sunday.
Predators: Host Chicago on Saturday.