Avalanche 3, Stars 1
DALLAS -- Colorado Avalanche center and captain Gabriel Landeskog scored the game-winning goal and goaltender Semyon Varlamov stopped 42 of 43 shots in a 3-1 win against the Dallas Stars on Saturday at American Airlines Center.
Landeskog scored a shorthanded goal, Colorado's second of the game, with 9:48 remaining in the second period. Center Carl Soderberg had scored a shorthanded goal late in the first period for the Avalanche (26-21-3), who won their fourth straight game.
Center Mikhail Grigorenko's goal with 5:51 remaining in regulation iced the victory for the Avalanche.
Dallas (30-14-5), which hasn't won back-to-back games since mid-December, got its lone goal from defenseman Jason Demers in the second period.
Colorado took a 1-0 lead into the first intermission after Soderberg scored a shorthanded goal with 53 seconds remaining in the first period.
After Stars center Jason Spezza was unable to control the puck near the Dallas blue line, Soderberg was then able to evade Stars left winger and captain Jamie Benn along the boards before beating Stars goaltender Antti Niemi top shelf to the far post with a wrist shot from the slot.
Dallas was 38 seconds into a power play resulting from a hooking call on Avalanche defenseman Nick Holden with 1:30 remaining in the opening frame.
Earlier in the period, Grigorenko nearly put the visitors ahead, but his wrist shot from the edge of the left circle at 12:52 hit the crossbar.
Varlamov stoned Dallas center Tyler Seguin at close range with 2:36 remaining in the first.
Colorado right winger Jack Skille suffered a back injury late in the first period.
Dallas pulled things level 7:24 into the second period when Demers scored a power-play goal off a rebound. Varlamov denied the initial shot by right winger Ales Hemsky from the left point and also turned away an attempt by left winger Antoine Roussel to poke in the rebound, but Demers alertly knocked the puck in for his fifth goal of the season.
The Avalanche regained their lead at 10:12 of the second when Landeskog scored a shorthanded goal. Landeskog's tally started when Stars defenseman John Klingberg couldn't play a carom along the boards near the Dallas blue line.
Landeskog collected the puck, rushed up the right side of the ice and scored his 11th goal of the season with a wrist shot from the slot over Niemi's blocker. Dallas was on the power play because Soderberg earned a double minor for high sticking Demers after he scored the tying goal.
Colorado is now 4-2-0 on the second night of a back-to-back. The Avalanche blocked 30 shots in the game, increasing its NHL-leading total to 844.
Grigorenko scored his third goal of the season by collecting his own rebound after a backhand attempt hit the near post and he then sent the carom into the top of the Dallas net.
Niemi stopped 12 of 15 shots for Dallas in a losing effort before heading to the bench with 2:53 remaining.
NOTES: Avalanche D Nate Guenin, D Zach Redmond and RW Chris Wagner were scratched. ... Stars LW Travis Moen, D Patrik Nemeth and Jamie Oleksiak (currently on a conditioning assignment with AHL Texas) were scratched. ... Since Colorado was on the tail end of a back-to-back after a 2-1 shootout win against St. Louis on Friday at Pepsi Center, the Avalanche did not hold a morning skate on Saturday. Five Avalanche players did skate on their own. ... Dallas coach Lindy Ruff made his morning skate on Saturday optional with approximately 15 players skating. ... Avalanche D Erik Johnson returned to the Colorado blue line after missing the previous nine games with a lower-body injury. Johnson last played on Jan. 4 against Los Angeles. ... Stars G Antti Niemi was starting his second consecutive game. ... Colorado was opening a three-game road trip. ... Dallas was in the second contest of a three-game homestand.