Oettinger makes 32 saves, Robertson scores go-ahead goal in 3rd period as Stars beat Hurricanes 4-2
DALLAS – Jake Oettinger made 32 saves, Jason Robertson scored the go-ahead goal early in the third period and the Dallas Stars defeated the Carolina Hurricanes 4-2 on Tuesday night.
Roope Hintz and Mason Marchment also scored for the Stars, who are 6-1-0 in their last seven games. Matt Duchene had an empty-net goal and an assist.
"We're going to score a ton of goals, and if we can keep the puck out of our own net, we'll be pretty good," Oettinger said.
Oettinger, a first-time All-Star this season who played on Auston Matthews' winning team in Toronto, earned his sixth straight win. He made a career-high 47 saves at Buffalo in Dallas' first game after the break.
"I thought tonight our goalie was definitely a difference maker," Stars coach Pete DeBoer said.
Jordan Staal had a goal and an assist for the Hurricanes, who had a five-game road winning streak snapped. Jesper Fast also scored and Pyotr Kochetkov stopped 19 shots.
The Stars lead the Central Division by two points over Colorado, while the Hurricanes trail the first-place New York Rangers by six points in the Metropolitan Division.
"He's obviously the backbone of that team," Staal said of Oettinger. "All good goalies can't stop 'em if they can't see 'em, and we didn't do a good enough job getting in front of him."
The Hurricanes appeared to pull within 4-3 with 1:32 to play on a 6-on-5 goal following a scrum in the crease, but Dallas won a challenge for goaltender interference.
Hurricanes coach Rod Brind'Amour said he's frustrated by the inconsistency in goalie interference rulings.
"We had it go the other way earlier in the year, same kind of thing," Brind'Amour said. "Nobody really knows. That's the problem. We should just admit we don't know, and we live with the calls."
"I thought it was pretty clear goalie interference, but you never know," Oettinger said. "Just happy it went our way."
The Stars never trailed, taking leads of 1-0, 2-1 and 3-2 before Duchene's score from Dallas' defensive zone, his 19th. It was the first time in eight games that the Stars didn't play a one-goal game.
Robertson has a team-high 54 points this season, and 17 in 11 career games against the Hurricanes. Hintz's goal was his team-best 23rd. Hintz had gone a season-long five games without a goal.
Jordan Martinook had two assists for Carolina. Joe Pavelski and Jani Hakanpaa each had two assists for Dallas.
Marchment extended his career-best point streak to seven games (three goals, six assists).
Staal, the Hurricanes' 35-year-old captain, has two goals in six games after going 14 games without one.
UP NEXT
Hurricanes: Will visit Arizona on Friday in the first of back-to-back road games.
Stars: Play at Nashville on Thursday, with their mothers making the trip after attending Tuesday's game.