Predators down Stars, extend run of road success

Field Level Media|published: Fri 12th January, 23:12 2024

Jan 12, 2024; Dallas, Texas, USA; Nashville Predators center Juuso Parssinen (75) checks Dallas Stars defenseman Nils Lundkvist (5) during the first period at the American Airlines Center. credits: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

Ryan O'Reilly had a goal and two assists and Roman Josi added three assists as the Nashville Predators earned a 6-3 road victory over the Dallas Stars on Friday.

The Predators are 9-1-1 in their past 11 road games. Two of those wins came against the Stars, as Nashville also recorded a 4-3 victory in Dallas on Jan. 6.

Filip Forsberg had a goal and an assist for Nashville. Jeremy Lauzon, Tommy Novak, Gustav Nyquist and Juuso Parssinen scored the Predators' other goals.

Kevin Lankinen stopped 19 of 22 shots to earn his sixth win in 13 games this season.

Matt Duchene had a goal and an assist for Dallas, which won its previous two games. Wyatt Johnston and Jani Hakanpaa also scored.

Jake Oettinger turned aside 32 of 36 shots in his return to the ice. The goaltender had missed the Stars' previous 12 games due to a lower-body injury.

Nashville outshot Dallas 38-22 in the game, and 32-15 over the final two periods. Fifteen of the Predators' shots came in the second frame, as Lauzon and Novak scored to give the visitors a 2-0 lead at the second intermission.

That lopsided period set the stage for a wild, seven-goal third period. The Stars made it a one-goal game on three different occasions, only for Nashville to continually respond and restore the multi-goal advantage.

Hakanpaa converted a well-placed shot at 1:09 into the third frame to put the Stars on the board. O'Reilly countered with a tally at the 3:41 mark. The forward has 12 points (three goals, nine assists) over his past nine games.

Johnston scored on a delayed penalty at the 8:11 mark, but Forsberg answered on a Nashville power play just under two minutes later. The Stars struck yet again with a power-play goal of their own, as Duchene delivered a perfectly-placed shot at a tight angle from the right circle 13:36 into the period.

The Stars' decision to pull Oettinger with just under three minutes remaining didn't pay off, as Nyquist and Parssinen iced the game with empty-net scores. Nyquist has 14 points (seven goals, seven assists) over the course of a 10-game points streak.

—Field Level Media

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