The Dallas Stars exploded out to a 5-0 lead and extended their point streak to 14 games with a 7-2 win against the Edmonton Oilers at American Airlines Center on Thursday.

Stars lines

• Robertson – Johnston – Bourque
• Steel – Hryckowian – Benn
• Bunting – Hryckowian – Erne
• Bäck – Hyry – Blackwell

• Lindell – Heiskanen
• Harley – Lundkvist
• Bichsel – Myers  

• Oettinger
• DeSmith

Scratches: Petrovic, Capobianco, Bastian, Lyubushkin, Hintz (injured).

Top story

We will not be pushed around. We shall do the pushing.

I wrote this as the top story somewhere in the second period. And it only got better.

Dallas is a different team. They have always been skilled and very good. But this season, and specifically since just before the Olympic break, they have also been tough as a son of a gun. Wow, I am my Dad’s son with that one.

It’s not just one player. It’s everybody on the bench. Mavrik Bourque and Wyatt Johnston got kicked out of the game with double minors in the final minutes. Colin Blackwell dropped the gloves. It’s the entire team.

Not only is it fun as heck to watch, but it gives them an extra layer. That layer is VITAL in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Teams know they cannot get away with anything. That not only makes you harder to play against and a tougher out in the spring, but it brings you closer together. And if you watch the reaction from the Dallas bench when one of their players returns after a penalty for defending a teammate, that tells you everything you need to know about how close this team is.

The best part… As much as I would’ve loved some juicy quotes about all the shenanigans tonight, it was somehow even better that the players and coach treated it like any other game. Business as usual.

That also says something about the group.

Live game notebook

Period 1

• Got to love when Dallas gets on the board early. Starts are so important in these contender on contender games. Just 1:23 into the first, Jamie Benn collected a bouncing puck off the end boards and slid a nice backhand inside the far post on Tristan Jarry. The building may still be half empty because of traffic — could’ve used one of those super late ESPN starts tonight — But the AAC still made some noise, and Dallas is up 1-0 early.

• Really, really good start for the Stars. They are outshooting Edmonton 5-0 nearly midway through the period and have spent the entire game in the Oilers’ zone. Jarry looks lost out there, too. He has misplayed a few pucks and is giving up big rebounds on harmless shots.
• Thomas Harley gave Leon Draisaitl a big ol’ whack on the pants away from the play. Draisaitl and Jake Walman had some words with Harley after the play. Harley laughed in their faces, per usual.
• Speaking of Harley, the defenseman made a nice play (after misreading the play around the net) to get across and barely get enough of Vasily Podkolzin’s stick to force his shot wide. Podkolzin had the entire net to shoot at, as he received the pass moving to the middle of the ice and forced Jake Oettinger well out of position trying to go left to right. But Harley got a piece of Podkolzin’s stick as he tried to shoot, and instead of being able to curl it easily into the open net, the puck rolled off his blade and hit the far post.
• And like hockey loves to do, the play went the other way shortly after, and Matt Duchene rocketed a pass backdoor to Sam Steel for an easy tap-in and 2-0 lead. Pete DeBoer is pulling Oettinger… Oh wait, never mind. Dallas is winning. All is well. Just joshin’ around, Pete. Steel now has a career-high 11 goals and 31 points.

• And I was typing the second goal, Jason Robertson skated down the right wing and beat Jarry clean to the glove side. The puck hit the near post, banked off Jarry’s back, and rolled across the line. When the Stars fans at the AAC are getting free Arby’s before the first period is over, you know it was a good opening frame for the home team.

• Two weird random things we noticed today up in the press box. First, Stone Strankman of ‘Clean Sheet of Ice’ noticed and informed me that Dallas has not been alternating… their alternates this season. Last year, Wyatt Johnston, Miro Heiskanen, Esa Lindell, and Tyler Seguin each wore an ‘A’. This season, it was exclusively Lindell and Seguin, except for when Benn was out with injury and Dallas went with three alternates (Seguin, Lindell, Heiskanen). Now, with Seguin out and Benn back, it is Lindell and Heiskanen wearing the ‘A’. Interesting, and makes we wonder who really will be the next captain when Benn hangs ’em up.
• Second, Dallas does not dress an extra player or two for warmup anymore. They used to do it a lot under DeBoer, and even did at times earlier this year. But not lately. Random, but intriguing.

Stars 3, Oilers 0

Period 2

• For the second time in his young Dallas tenure, Tyler Myers jumped up in the rush, took a nice little pass from the wall into the middle of the ice, and tried a chip shot to the far post. Jarry made a good save.
• This is ridiculous. The Stars are all over Edmonton.
• Jason Dickinson launched Nils Lundkvist’s stick into the second row as Edmonton rushed in. It was hilarious, but it’s also a penalty. Lundkvist got his stick back from a fan — I wonder if he will give that fan an old one later on — and Dallas is going back on the power play.
• Well, Johnston has now tied Dino Ciccarelli for the franchise record with 22 power-play goals this season. I think it’s safe to say he will break that if he stays healthy.

• Seconds later, Robertson responded to Johnston tying his goal lead and scored another… Jarry is absolutely swimming. 5-0 Stars.

• With the game shifting to full-on sloppy, Evan Bouchard ripped one past Oettinger’s glove to get Edmonton on the board.

• A nice ovation inside the AAC for Johnston tying the record.
• Yeesh, got to be careful here if you’re Dallas. The game has shifted, and Edmonton has put up some offensive pressure. Our old pal Dickinson made it 5-2. Justin Hryckowian said postgame that there was a constant message on the bench to not let the game get sloppy and to keep their foot on the gas pedal.

• Jarry made an incredible save after Dallas killed a penalty and Steel broke in 2-on-1. Myers came crashing down the middle of the ice and Jarry got the back of his arm on a backhand in tight.
• Connor McDavid — it’s a damn good sign that I have not written his name until the final four minutes of the second period — punched Myers in the back of the head in frustration. Despite trying to sell the ref with a quick tap on the back of Myers — Like, we’re buddies, it’s cool — he goes to the box for roughing.
• Edmonton came awfully close to making it 5-3 shorthanded. Adam Henrique ripped a one timer off the crossbar on a 3-on-2. This game has completely come unhinged.
• Good save by Oettinger, as Zach Hyman broke in alone because Heiskanen and Lindell got caught out too wide on Edmonton’s “power-play breakout,” AKA McDavid solo.
• As the period ended, Hryckowian got into a wrestling match with McDavid. It looked liked Arttu Hyry tried to turn and shoot the puck out of the zone as time expired, and it hit Draisaitl. McDavid and Draisaitl went after Hyry, and Hryckowian jumped in the way. Draisaitl got a hack on Hyry, McDavid and Hryckowian went at it, and all hell broke loose. Hryckowian even tried to drop the gloves, but the officials got in the way. He did get a scratch on McDavid’s face though. McDavid, Draisaitl, and Hryckowian each got minor penalties.

Stars 5, Oilers 2

Period 3

• Oh myyyyy, Johnston had a chance TEED UP in the slot to break the PP goals record. He just missed wide, gut Benn ripped a snapper past Jarry just after to make it 6-2. Benn and Robertson are each on Hat Trick watch.

• Edmonton has unraveled. They are so frustrated and taking bad penalties. This time, Josh Samanski stuck his stick in Hryckowian’s skate, sending him flying into the boards feet first. It was an intentional, dirty play, and Blackwell jumped in right away to help. Then, Trent Frederic threw about 10 cheap punches to the back of Hryckowian’s head with the official holding him back. Penalties galore, Hryckowian chirping Edmonton on his way off, fun all around.

• On his first shift after coming out of the box, Hryckowian draws a penalty, as Darnell Nurse breaks his stick over his back with a cross check. Hryckowian and Blackwell also got a nice ovation and warm welcome when returning to the Dallas bench out of the box.
• Hryckowian feels like he draws a lot of penalties… and it turns out, he does.

• This is just amazing…

• After all of the chaos, Matt Duchene scored a nifty goal, and Benn just sat there and stared down the Edmonton bench. This game really had everything. And now, it’s a 14-game point streak for Dallas, just one shy of the franchise record.

Stars 7, Oilers 2

Quotable

Stars coach Glen Gulutzan on his team standing up for each other

“You either take it forever or you respond. I liked our response.”