Stars end road trip with playoff rematch in Vegas

The Dallas Stars conclude a three-game Western road trip on Friday night when they face the Pacific Division-leading Vegas Golden Knights in Las Vegas.

It will be the first time the two teams have met since the first round of the Western Conference playoffs last spring. Dallas rallied from a 2-0 deficit to eliminate the defending champion Golden Knights in seven games.

“The last two years have been tough games and great rivalries,” Dallas defenseman Nils Lundkvist said. “It’s an exciting place to play.”

The Stars split the first two games of the trip, winning 2-1 against the Utah Hockey Club in Salt Lake City on Monday before taking a 2-0 lead in a 3-2 loss at the Los Angeles Kings on Wednesday lost in the first third. This ended a three-game winning streak for Dallas.

Warren Foegele scored the decisive goal with an all-round shot 2:22 minutes into the third period, completing the Kings’ comeback. Dallas outscored Los Angeles 11-4 in a dominant first period, featuring a power-play goal from Wyatt Johnston and Mason Marchment’s fifth goal in six games. But the Kings rallied to tie the game with second-period goals from Tanner Jeannot and Joel Edmundson, setting up Foegele’s game-winner.

“Two ahead, that’s definitely a really good chance to win,” Johnston said. “I didn’t do my job well enough to keep playing and give it my all.”

Dallas, third in the Central Division, fell to just 6-7-0 with the loss on the road, but coach Peter DeBoer felt his team played well enough to win.

“They played better in the second period, but the shots were 7-7 and we hit a post or the crossbar and one went off our leg and into the goal,” DeBoer said. “I think they were opportunistic and got back into the game, but in the third period it’s an even game.”

Vegas bounced back from the most lopsided home loss in franchise history – 6-0 to Utah on Saturday – to win two straight, conceding just one goal.

The Golden Knights beat Edmonton 1-0 on Tuesday, with Adin Hill making 28 saves, and closed the series with a 4-1 win in Anaheim on Wednesday, with Shea Theodore scoring two goals and Ilya Samsonov stopping 19 of 20 shots.

“It’s the part of the season where the games are close and these points are crucial,” Theodore said. “You kind of want to bench them if you can. Obviously we’re happy with our game and like where it’s at.”

Samsonov, who heard his share of Bronx cheers after giving up six goals in the first 25 1/2 minutes against Utah, rebounded to win his sixth game in 10 starts (6-3-1) while increasing his goals-against average 3.16 lowered.

“Well, he needed it, right?” Vegas coach Bruce Cassidy responded when asked about Samsonov’s performance. “Listen, he’s a good professional. He was in the league. They’re going to have games like that or stretches like that, so he probably needs to get a few under his belt to feel comfortable with his game. So that’s one.” . Good for him.”

The Knights will receive a boost with captain Mark Stone returning to take part in Friday’s game after a month-long absence.

Stone, 32, has been sidelined since suffering a lower-body injury in Vegas’ 4-2 win over the Edmonton Oilers on Nov. 6.

After Friday’s contest, Vegas has a five-day break before embarking on a three-game road trip to Winnipeg, Edmonton and Minnesota.

–Field level media