The Dallas Stars and Pittsburgh Penguins faced off in an inter-conference matchup earlier this week in Pittsburgh. The Penguins were looking to win their third straight home game, while the Stars were looking to bounce back from their 4-1 loss to the Winnipeg Jets on November 9. 7-1 victory against the Penguins.

Game Summary

The Stars scored early and often in the first period, starting with Matt Duchene continuing his hot streak to start the season. He fired a shot past Penguins goaltender Joel Blomqvist on the Stars’ first shot of the game. It was just the beginning, with Logan Stankoven, Mason Marchment, Miro Heiskanen (his first two goals of the season), and finally, Tyler Seguin all scored goals in the first period, pushing the Stars to a 6-0 lead to end the period. The Penguins failed to find their footing and were completely dominated during the period. Penguins head coach Mike Sullivan pulled Blomqvist after allowing the third goal of the period, while Alex Nedeljkovic relieved the young goaltender.

A less action-packed second period saw the Penguins win the period, ending That of Jake Oettinger shutout with just under five minutes left in the period thanks to a great pass from Valtteri Puustinen to Anthony Beauvillier for a nice shot to beat Oettinger’s blocking side. Overall, the Penguins played a better second period, but couldn’t keep up with the Stars’ speed, and Nedeljkovic made several important saves to try to keep his team somewhat in the game.

The third period was a little more eventful, with both teams having chances at the net, but they were thwarted by Nedeljkovic and Oettinger until Wyatt Johnston capitalized on the Stars’ second power play goal of the game. At the end of the game, Marchment had five points (one goal and four assists), while Duchene finished with three points (one goal, two assists). The Stars nearly doubled the Penguins in shots, recording 39 compared to the Penguins’ 21.

The Stars improve to 9-5-0 this season and 7-1-0 when scoring first. They will return to the ice on November 14 when they take on the Boston Bruins. The Penguins are 6-9-2 and will face the Detroit Red Wings on November 13.