Spezza, Benn lift Stars past Coyotes
GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Dallas Stars coach Lindy Ruff has been harping all season on the need for his best players to play like his best players as the team attempts to survive a rash of injuries to their forward group. Ruff got the lift he needed from the Stars' stars in a 3-2 win over the Arizona Coyotes on Tuesday at Gila River Arena.
Top-line wings Jason Spezza and Jamie Benn each had a goal and an assist, top defenseman John Klingberg scored an empty-net goal and goaltender Kari Lehtonen made 35 saves while picking up his 23rd career assist as Dallas improved to 6-4-1 in its last 11 games since a gut-check 6-2 loss to Pittsburgh on Dec. 1. The Stars are 4-1-1 in their last six games.
Mike Smith made 26 saves for Arizona, which lost its fifth straight game and is 0-4 on a five-game homestand that ends against the New York Rangers on Thursday.
Anthony Duclair scored for the Coyotes, who have 27 goals in their last 15 games (3-9-3). Radim Vrbata added a goal on a penalty shot with 6.6 seconds left after Dallas defenseman Esa Lindell closed his hand on the puck in the crease.
Dallas broke out on top when Spezza got around Vrbata during a second-period Arizona power play. Spezza brought the puck from his backhand to his forehand and flipped a puck over Smith's blocker for a 1-0 lead at 2:48.
The goal came on the Stars' second shorthanded chance of the same Coyotes power play. Smith stopped Benn on a breakaway moments earlier.
Arizona tied the game less than a minute later when left winger Tobias Rieder pushed a puck out in front of the net that right winger Duclair got four whacks at before jamming it past Lehtonen.
It was just the second goal of the season and the first in 22 games for Duclair, who had 20 goals last season as a rookie. After the goal, Duclair kissed his stick blade and smiled.
Benn put the Stars back on top with a stroke of luck on a power play with Arizona's Peter Holland in the box for holding. Stationed off the right post, Benn whiffed on Tyler Seguin's pass from the left point but the puck hit his skate and stopped near the goal line, allowing Benn to push it in for 10th goal and a 2-1 lead at 12:03.
NOTES: Because Monday was a league-mandated day off for the holidays, the Stars were supposed to depart Dallas at 7 a.m. CT on Tuesday for Arizona, but a technical issue with the plane created a three-hour delay and the team eventually skated at home before departing at 2 p.m. The Stars arrived at Gila River Arena about two hours before game time. ... The Stars placed LW Antoine Roussel (upper body) on injured reserve Monday, retroactive to Dec. 20. He is considered day-to-day. C Jason Dickinson was recalled from Texas of the AHL to take Roussel's roster spot. ... Stars RW Patrick Sharp (concussion) and D Stephen Johns (lower body) are day-to-day. Sharp turned 35 on Tuesday... Coyotes D Jakob Chychrun returned to the lineup after missing Friday's game against Toronto while going through the concussion protocol. ... Coyotes RW Ryan White missed his second straight game with a lower-body injury.