FLA@DAL: Radulov finishes off pretty passing play

DALLAS --Alexander Radulov scored twice in the third period, and the Dallas Stars kept pace in the Central Division with a 4-2 win against the Florida Panthers at American Airlines Center on Tuesday.

Radulov gave Dallas a 3-2 lead at 10:32 on a one-timer off a pass from Jamie Benn following a turnover by Panthers defenseman Mike Matheson, and he made it 4-2 at 19:20 when he was awarded a goal after Mike Hoffman threw his stick to prevent him from scoring into an empty net.
Ben Bishop, who missed the previous two games because of a lower-body injury, made 20 saves, Benn had a goal and two assists, and Tyler Seguin had four assists for the Stars (38-29-6), who are 7-2-1 in their past 10 games. Dallas leads the Arizona Coyotes by four points for the first wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Western Conference and trails the St. Louis Blues by two points for third place in the Central.
WATCH: [All Panthers vs. Stars highlights]
Aleksander Barkov scored two goals, and Sam Montembeault made 33 saves for the Panthers (32-29-12), who have lost two in a row and are eight points behind the Columbus Blue Jackets for the second wild card into the playoffs from the Eastern Conference.
"You never want to give up, you never know," Panthers forward Jonathan Huberdeau said about the playoffs. "But we've got to play for pride, for us, for each other. We've got to play until the end. That's what we want to do."
Barkov gave Florida a 1-0 lead at 2:11 of the first period with a redirection of Huberdeau's shot along the right wall. The goal ended Bishop's shutout streak at 233:03, the longest in Stars/Minnesota North Stars history.

Benn tied it 1-1 at 17:49 in front after getting the rebound of Radulov's initial shot. The goal came after Stars coach Jim Montgomery decided to put Benn back on the top line with Radulov and Seguin.
"That first goal was real pretty and I just said, 'Wow, There's something there tonight,'" Montgomery said. "I was going to ride them because I thought we were a little sleepy, and then everybody else caught on as well."
John Klingberg gave the Stars a 2-1 lead with a power-play goal at 10:38 of the second period, but Barkov tied it 2-2 with a goal short side from the left circle on the power play at 16:57.

FLA@DAL: Klingberg nets wrister on power play

Barkov has 17 points (four goals, 13 assists) during a seven-game point streak
"It would be nice to get some secondary scoring and take a little relief off the big boys, but it didn't happen tonight," Panthers coach Bob Boughner said.
Stars forward Roope Hintz appeared to give Dallas a 3-2 lead on a tap in off a pass from Radulov at the end of the second period, but the Situation Room confirmed that the puck crossed the goal line after time had expired.

They said it

"We can't leave our goalie out to dry like that. I think [Montembeault] made some good saves, but they have a good team. We've got to be prepared to play defensively, and we just didn't execute tonight." -- Panthers forward Jonathan Huberdeau
"I was happy to kind of run with it, but it was kind of unfortunate it ended so fast." -- Stars goalie Ben Bishop on his shutout streak

FLA@DAL: Bishop uses pad to turn aside Trocheck

Need to know

Keith Yandle had an assist and has 57 points (nine goals, 48 assists) this season, tying Robert Svehla (1995-96) for the most by a defenseman in Panthers history. … Stars forward Jason Spezza, 35, was a healthy scratch for the first time this season and second time in his NHL career. … Defenseman Brady Keeper, who signed an entry-level contract with Florida on Monday, didn't play but participated in pregame warmups. … Radulov has 14 points (nine goals, five assists) in his past 12 games. … Huberdeau has 14 points (five goals, nine assists) in his past seven games. ... Montembeault made his sixth consecutive start for the Panthers.

What's next

Panthers:Host the Arizona Coyotes on Thursday (7 p.m. ET; FS-F, FS-A, NHL.TV)
Stars:Host the Colorado Avalanche on Thursday (8:30 p.m. ET; FS-SW+, ALT, NHL.TV)

Radulov, Seguin lead Stars past Panthers, 4-2