Sports

Domi Scores Twice, Coyotes Roll Over Stars 6-3

February 19, 2016 / 5:21 AM CST / CBS Texas

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GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) - The Arizona Coyotes watched one of the NHL's fastest teams streak past them for more than 10 minutes.

Any other season, the Coyotes may not have had much of a chance of catching them. With this group, led by rookies Max Domi and Anthony Duclair, an up-tempo style is right in their wheelhouse.

Domi had two goals and an assist, Duclair had three assists on the same line and the Coyotes beat Dallas at its own game with a 6-3 victory over the Stars on Thursday night.

"It was a fun out there," Domi said. "That's a fast team and we had to play fast to keep up with them."

Arizona fell into an early hole as the NHL's top-scoring team raced around the ice. Once the Coyotes found the right gear, they blew past the Stars, scoring a season-best six goals for the second straight game -- a first since 1995.

Domi scored both his goals in the second period, sandwiched around one by Michael Stone. Martin Hanzal scored to open the third, Tyler Gaudet added his first NHL goal and Antoine Vermette capped it with an empty-netter.

Louis Domingue made some highlight-reel stops among his 36 saves to help the Coyotes hold off the hard-charging Stars.
"We like to play with speed and skill on our line and it worked out well for us," Duclair said.

The Stars typically use speed to their advantage, skating teams off the ice with flurries of goals.

Dallas had the jump early, taking the lead in the first period on Tyler Seguin's 31st goal and grabbing it back in the second with Jamie Benn's 30th.

Once the Coyotes got rolling, the Stars either were unable to keep up or were stonewalled by Domingue. Ales Hemsky also scored for Dallas.

"We should have been ready and I think we took them lightly," Dallas defenseman Jason Demers. "That's what happens. You get down and you're chasing it and in this league it doesn't take much to give up a game like that."

The Coyotes were coming off a 6-2 home victory over Montreal on Monday night.

The Stars have been scoring all season. They entered the game with an NHL-high 186 goals and got back one of their key players, Jason Spezza, who had missed six games with an upper-body injury.

Dallas jumped on the Coyotes at the start, creating numerous good scoring chances early in the first period. Domingue made some tough saves to keep the Stars at bay before the pressure caught up to Arizona midway through, when Seguin scored after keeping the puck on a 2-on-1.

The Coyotes were able to get some sustained pressure late in the period, but Antti Niemi made some difficult saves to keep the one-goal lead.

Domi got one past him early in the second period, racing past Demers and setting up a backhand goal with a forehand fake to get the Stars goalie leaning.

Dallas ramped up the pressure again, taking the lead back on a power play when Spezza sent a feed through the back of the crease out front to Benn, who dropped to a knee for a one-timer.

The Coyotes punched back 51 seconds later with Stone scoring from near the blue line on a shot that deflected off Stars center Colton Sceviour's stick.

Domi put Arizona up late in the period, punching in a rebound for his 15th goal after Duclair did most of the work with some nifty stickhandling on a breakaway. Niemi nearly did the splits to make a pad save on Duclair, but had no chance with Domi charging hard.

Hanzal opened the third period by scoring on a rebound, then Gaudet followed Hemsky's goal by slipping the puck past Niemi on a give-and-go with Kyle Chipchura.

"When we started to skate in the third period, you could see what we could do but it was too little too late," Stars coach Lindy Ruff said.

Notes: Hemsky played his 800th career game. ... Coyotes G Mike Smith is expected to join the time for its five-game road trip that starts next week. He's been out since having abdominal surgery in early December. ... Arizona moved C Boyd Gordon to injured reserve with an upper-body injury suffered Feb. 4 against Chicago.