Rookie Lindell's first goal propels Stars to 2-1 win
DALLAS -- Esa Lindell scored his first career goal and added an assist, and Antti Niemi stopped 30 of 31 shots, including all 14 he faced in the third period, to help the Dallas Stars to a 2-1 win over the Vancouver Canucks on Friday night at American Airlines Center.
Playing in his 17th career game, Lindell, a rookie, scored the eventual winning goal with 4:02 remaining in the second period when he beat Canucks goaltender Ryan Miller, who stopped 26 of 28 shots, with a wrist shot from the left circle to make it 2-1.
Radek Faksa also scored for Dallas (9-8-5). The Stars won for the first time this season when conceding the game;s first goal. Dallas had been 0-7-3 when allowing the first goal.
Jayson Megna had the lone goal for Vancouver (8-11-2), which is now 1-1-0 on its four-game road trip.
The Canucks struck first when Megna scored his first goal of the season 5:01 into the first period on their first shot of the game.
Megna started the rush by winning a puck battle along the wall inside the Dallas zone. And after a quick pass to Bo Horvat in the neutral zone, Horvat passed the puck back. Megna then sped toward the Dallas goal and spun Niemi before finishing with a backhand.
Horvat now has five points (three assists) in his past three games. Megna's last goal also came against Dallas on Jan. 5 as a member of the New York Rangers.
Dallas nearly answered midway through the first period, but Tyler Seguin's one-timer off the rush at 9:56 found the left post.
The Stars tied it at 9:32 of the second period when Faksa redirected a Lindell shot from the deep left point for his second goal of the season. Faksa got his stick in front of Lindell's flick, redirecting the puck enough to send under Miller's right arm to make it 1-1.
Niemi made a strong save on Jack Skille, who was activated from injured reserve on Friday morning, 4:50 into the third period, denying Skille's close-range attempt to net the equalizer with a pad save inside the crease.
Niemi also turned away a point-blank shot from Alexandre Burrows 6:36 into the third period. Niemi rebuffed Burrows a second time, this time at the near post and off the rush, with 2:08 remaining in regulation.
Dallas spent the final 1:57 a man down after Patrick Sharp was called for hooking. However, the Stars killed off the Canucks' power play, even with the extra attacker after Miller headed to the bench with 1:20 remaining.
NOTES: The Canucks scratched LW Sven Baertschi (foot), D Alex Biega and RW Alexandre Grenier, who was recalled from AHL Utica on Friday morning. Grenier had 10 assists and 14 points in 16 game for Utica. ... The Stars scratched LW Curtis McKenzie and D Patrik Nemeth. ... Canucks LW Loui Eriksson spent seven seasons in Dallas (2006-2013) before being traded to Boston in July 2013. ... On Friday morning, Dallas assigned D Stephen Johns to AHL Texas. ... Canucks G Ryan Miller started for Vancouver. ... Stars G Antti Niemi was between the pipes for Dallas. ... Vancouver was playing the second game of a three-game road trip. ... Dallas begins a four-game road trip (St. Louis, Detroit, Pittsburgh, Colorado). ...Canucks C Brendan Gaunce, whose brother Cameron once played for the Stars, made his NHL debut in Dallas last October.