DALLAS — Joe Pavelski had a goal and two assists for the Dallas Stars in a 5-2 win against the San Jose Sharks at the American Airlines Center on Saturday.
Fredrik Olofsson scored his first NHL goal, and Jake Oettinger made 29 saves for the Stars (23-9-6), who have won four in a row.
“It’s always fun to see someone get their first,” Pavelski said. “It’s a big moment in a career, and it was a big goal for us at that time. Inside a great atmosphere like tonight, it was pretty special. It’s fun to be in that ‘celly,’ in that pile. Lot of fun “
Video: SJS@DAL: Olofsson regains the lead in tight for Stars
Erik Karlsson tied a franchise record by extending his point streak to 12 games, and James Reimer made 26 saves for the Sharks (11-20-7), who played at the Chicago Blackhawks on Sunday.
“Losing [stinks],” San Jose forward Logan Couture said. “You can only continuously say we did good things so many times. We’ve got to go out there tomorrow night and win a hockey game.”
Olofsson gave the Stars a 3-2 lead at 10:45 of the second period, tapping in a backdoor pass from Pavelski. He was playing his third NHL game after being called up from Texas of the American Hockey League on Tuesday.
“In the neutral zone there I just, for some reason, your instincts kind of take over and I’m like, ‘I’m going backdoor,'” Olofsson said. “Luckily, [Pavelski] is thinking the same thing right away. He was just waiting, waiting, waiting. [Defense] was sleeping and then tap-in. Hats off to him, that’s a play he does in his sleep. For me, it was just go to the hard areas and put it in.”
Video: SJS@DAL: Hintz fires home a SHG from the slot
Roope Hintz pushed it to 4-2 at 15:18 of the third period with a short-handed goal. It was his sixth goal in his past five games.
“I thought our energy levels were off a little bit, but we got some timely special teams,” Dallas coach Peter DeBoer said. “We got some goaltending at the right time, some big saves in the third. Good teams find ways to win games like that.”
Esa Lindell scored into an empty net at 18:47 for the 5-2 final.
“They got two power-play goals. They got a short-handed goal when we had the opportunity to tie it,” San Jose coach David Quinn said. “That’s three of their five goals, and the other one was an empty-netter. I liked our game 5-on-5, for sure. I thought we played a good hockey game, but our special teams let us down tonight.”
Alexander Barabanov gave the Sharks a 1-0 lead at 5:13 of the first period, shooting five-hole on Oettinger after receiving a stretch pass from Matt Benning.
Karlsson, who had the secondary assist on the play, has 19 points (two goals, 17 assists) during his point streak, which ties Rob Gaudreau (1992-93) and Jonathan Cheechoo (2005-06) for the longest in Sharks history. It is also the eighth-longest point streak by a defenseman in NHL history.
Video: SJS@DAL: Pavelski scores PPG in 1st period
Pavelski tied it 1-1 with a power-play goal at 10:22 when he tipped in a one-timer from the top of the circle. Jason Robertson.
“We were just going back to the front of the net. I got his body and I think I got one of his arms and he was able to one-hand tip it still,” Sharks defenseman Jacob Megna said. “I thought whoever shot it, he got it off as quick as he could. I think it surprised all of us that he was able to shoot that quick. Obviously, I got most of Joe, but you’ve got to get all of him. He’s an unbelievable tipper, so you’ve got to get his arms and his body at the same time.”
Robertson gave the Stars a 2-1 lead on another power play at 12:34 after his initial shot hit the post and bounced off the back of Reimer’s skates into the net. Robertson has 11 points (two goals, nine assists) during a seven-game point streak.
“I think it’s been hard work, everyone is working hard, moving the puck quickly and getting shots through to the net,” Dallas defenseman Miro Heiskanen said about the power-play success. “Playing pretty simple, not trying to do too much. Just play it simple and work hard. You have to make clean passes, that’s the key.”
Video: SJS@DAL: Robertson’s PPG finds its way into the net
Oskar Lindblom tied it 2-2 at 9:03 of the second period on a rebound in the slot.
“In the third there, I felt like we were playing well and we made stupid mistakes and they scored goals. That’s why they won the game,” Lindblom said. “We had a lot of chances on our line, unlucky we couldn’t score more of them. I feel good and feel better and better about my game.”
NOTES: Sharks defenseman Radim Simek played three shifts in the first period before leaving with an undisclosed injury. There was no update on his status after the game. … Stars forward Jamie Benn has nine points (four goals, five assists) in an eight-game point streak.
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