Two shots on goal in a third period is a small allowance when a team needs an equalizer. Dallas made one of them count Tuesday. That distinction should survive the celebration.
The Stars beat Boston 3-2 in overtime at American Airlines Center, with Mikko Rantanen completing a hat trick on the winning power play. Dallas improved to 5-3-1 and collected its third consecutive victory. Those are welcome developments. An attack that produced so little on goal while chasing the game still has an assignment waiting for it.
Boston began the third period ahead 2-1. The Stars therefore needed to create an answer against an opponent with a clear reason to protect the dangerous space. The Bruins did that effectively enough to restrict Dallas to two shots, but Rantanen found the equalizer with 6:22 remaining in regulation.
The sequence involved both resistance and recovery. A Hintz attempt struck McAvoy in the slot before the deflection reached Rantanen around the right circle. The finish came quickly enough to turn Boston’s blocked shot into a temporary interruption rather than the end of the opportunity. Hintz and Thomas Harley were credited with assists.
There is something valuable for Dallas to retain from that play. An initial attempt does not have to be the final useful action in a possession. A blocked puck can create another opening, and a scorer has to recognize it. Rantanen did. The concern is how rarely the Stars otherwise reached the point of making Jeremy Swayman stop a shot during that period.
Shot totals require some restraint of their own. Two shots on goal does not mean two attempts, two possessions or two moments spent in Boston’s zone. It also does not tell us how dangerous every opportunity was. A fair assessment stops short of inventing a detailed territorial story from one number. It can still recognize how little work reached the goalie while Dallas was behind.
Boston’s 22 blocked attempts across the game supply important context. The Stars were facing real defensive resistance, rather than simply declining to attack. Dallas had 13 blocks of its own. Credit to the Bruins belongs beside the criticism of the home offense: creating against a team defending well is a different task from accepting whatever space happens to be available.
The full-game shot count also prevents an exaggerated conclusion. Dallas finished with 25 shots to Boston’s 20, so this was not an evening in which the Stars never threatened. The first period alone gave Dallas nine shots against seven by the visitors. The late restriction was a particular problem inside a game with more varied phases.
Special teams allowed Dallas to survive it. Boston converted none of its four power plays. Once Harley drew Pavel Zacha’s slashing penalty in overtime, the Stars had a four-on-three opportunity and used it. Miro Heiskanen provided the low feed, Rantanen carried toward the net and the backhand finish settled the game at 3:52 of the extra period.
