Paul Stastny has picked up the Sakic torch and skated strongly in his first tour as the Avalanche's top-line Center
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The story of the day was Paul Stastny’s first line on Sunday in Dallas.
Down 3-2 in the 2nd Period of a game that was a must-win for the struggling Stars, the Avalanche looked like they might be in for more Dallas disappointment. Then Paul Stastny tipped in a shot by Peter Meuller on the Power Play and the Avalanche found a comfort zone. The Stastny line would score two more unanswered goals spanning the last ten minutes of the 2nd and the first 10 of the 3rd. Chris Stewart tucked a bad-angle shot inside the leg of Dallas goalie Marty Turco, and Paul got his second on a breakaway 1 on 2 drive.
The subsequent two-goal lead was too much of a shock to the Stars, who were buzzing before Stastny took a bad Dallas pass to the house against both Stars defenders.
Aside from scoring three goals, the Stastny line took the ice for much of the final five minutes of the game. That stretch saw Dallas initially struggle to get past the Neutral Zone Trap employed by Avalanche forwards. When the Stars finally locked into the Colorado Zone, they were able to draw a penalty on Avalanche defender Scott Hannan. And it was Stastny at Center for the ensuing 6 on 4 (Stars pulled their goalie) that closed out regulation.
In that last five minutes, and really throughout the game, Avalanche goaltender Craig Anderson played exceptionally well. He set an Avalanche record for most shots faced in a season, stopping 48 of 51 Dallas shots in this game. Good for a 5-3 win.
Winger Matt Hendricks was the third member of that Staz line. An unsung hero all year long, Hendricks drew two fights and generally pummelled Stars all day long. His physical play allows his linemates, Stewart and Stastny, to skate freely out of corners and generate chances in front of the net.
