TEMPE, Ariz. — Jason Robertson scored twice, and the Dallas Stars turned a four-goal first period into a 7-2 win against the Arizona Coyotes at Mullett Arena on Thursday.
Jamie Benn had a goal and two assists, and Scott Wedgewood made 28 saves for the Stars (7-3-1), who have won three of four.
“I liked our game,” Dallas coach Peter DeBoer said. “We came out ready to play, and we got rewarded for it early. Then we did enough the rest of the way to get the two points.”
Video: DAL@ARI: Robertson stretches the lead to 4-0 in the 1st
Juuso Valimaki and Lawson Crouse scored, and Karel Vejmelka made 22 saves for the Coyotes (3-6-1) after Connor Ingram Allowed three goals on 10 shots.
“We were coming off a huge win (3-1 against the Florida Panthers on Tuesday) and emotions were high,” Crouse said. “I don’t know if they were running too high. They scored on the second shift and then it’s boom, boom, boom, boom and it’s 4-0. And it’s hard to come back in this league when it’s 4-0 in the first.”
Denis Gurianov scored from the slot 1:27 into the first period to make it 1-0. It was the ninth time in 11 games the Stars have scored the opening goal this season.
“The first shot of the night goes in and obviously it gets the boys going,” Wedgewood said. “We had a quick shot, [think] quick mentality, and an early lead is obviously huge. We started great and throughout the whole game we kept them in their end.”
Wyatt Johnston made it 2-0 at 3:54 with an unassisted goal after intercepting Dysin Mayo‘s breakout pass. Johnston is the first rookie in Stars/Minnesota North Stars history to score at least one goal in three consecutive road games.
“It’s really important when you get the first couple of goals, especially in the first few shifts,” Gurianov said. “It’s like, let’s get the boys rolling. Guys feel good when you score the first couple.”
Video: DAL@ARI: Johnston roofs a goal for 2-0 lead in 1st
Ty Dellandrea tipped Colin Miller‘s wrist shot from the high slot to extend it to 3-0 at 11:18.
Robertson then made it 4-0 at 18:30 after Roope Hintz fed the puck to Joe Pavelskiwho found Robertson alone in the right circle.
“[Robertson] finds a way to be in the right place at the right time,” DeBoer said. “All four guys are battling, working, and he’s just kind of standing off to the side and the puck bounces right to him. He’s got those types of instincts. You don’t teach that, that’s pretty special.”
Robertson scored a power-play goal to push it to 5-0 at 15:14 of the second. He has five goals during a four-game goal streak.
“He gets the puck, he’s so calm with it,” Dellandrea said of Robertson. “He’s patient, he lets the game come to him. You can see his brain analyzing the play and trying to get open. He’s just such a smart player and finesse player. It’s fun to watch.”
Video: DAL@ARI: Robertson pots PPG for second goal of game
Benn intercepted Vejmelka’s clearing attempt and shot into an open net 27 seconds into the third to make it 6-0.
Valimaki scored at 5:07 to make it 6-1, and Crouse scored at 9:06 to cut it to 6-2.
Jani Hakanpaa scored at 15:45 for the 7-2 final.
Dallas is 5-1-1 in its past seven games against Arizona and 14-2-1 in its past 17.
“That’s how you’ve got to come out on the road,” Dellandrea said. “We’ve got to get good at doing that every night.”
Wedgewood was playing in place of Jake Oettinger (lower body), who is expected back within the next week.
“He keeps us in games, he wins big games,” Dellandrea said. “I wish we could have worked a little harder and given him the shutout he deserved.”
The Coyotes went 1-2-1 during their inaugural four-game homestand at Mullett Arena on the campus of Arizona State University. Arizona begins a 14-game road trip Saturday and won’t play at home again until Dec. 9.
“When you let in four [goals] In the first, it’s going to be tough,” Coyotes forward Dylan Guenther said.
NOTES: Ten players had at least one point for the Stars in the first period. … Dallas forward Roope Hintz has seven points (three goals, four assists) during a four-game point streak. … Gurianov’s goal was his first since March 22. … Coyotes forward Zack Kassian (lower body) missed a second straight game. He won’t accompany them on the first five-game leg of their month-long road trip. … Crouse scored for the third consecutive game.
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