Senators Win Second Straight With Victory Over Stars

The Ottawa Senators earned their second win in as many days as they defeated the Dallas Stars 3-2. Josh Norris, Tim Stützle and Matthew Highmore all scored for the Senators, while goaltender Leevi Meriläinen got his second win in a row following last night’s 5-0 victory.

The Stars struck first at 4:29 into the opening period to give themselves a 1-0 lead. It was Jason Robertson with his 11th goal of the season that put the Stars up halfway through the frame.

The rest of the first period saw both team’s defence stand strong as neither found the back of the net. As a result, the Senators headed into the first intermission down by one.

Forward Josh Norris batted his 15th goal of the season past goaltender Casey DeSmith to tie the game 1-1 at 3:14 into the second period. Drake Batherson and Nick Jensen both picked up assists on Norris’ goal.

Just 39 seconds later, the Senators took a 2-1 lead at when forward Tim Stützle buried a shot for his 14th goal of the season. Jake Sanderson and the birthday boy Claude Giroux both assisted on the go-ahead goal.

A power play opportunity for the Stars saw them score to tie the game, but the Senators challenged the play for offside. The call on the ice was overturned and the Senators held onto their 2-1 lead.

The Stars were unable to convert on the remainder of their power play, and the last seven minutes of the second period saw neither team score again. The Senators headed into the second intermission up 2-1 thanks to the two quick goals in the second period.

Opening the period just 21 seconds in, Matthew Highmore scored his first goal of the season and first as an Ottawa Senator. It took a few tries — and a post — but the forward was able to bat the puck in to extend the Senators’ lead to 3-1. Forwards Nick Cousins and Shane Pinto both picked up assists on Highmore’s goal.

With the net empty, the Stars put the pressure on with two minutes remaining — including a 6-on-5 power play. With 52 seconds remaining, the Stars got back within one off Evgenii Dadanov’s 12th goal of the season.

The late push wasn’t enough for the Stars, as the Senators stood strong and held onto their lead to win the game 3-2 for their second win in a row. Tonight’s victory marked the second time this season that the Senators won both games in a back to back.

In both instances, the same goaltender started both games in the back-to-back. Tonight’s win followed Leevi Meriläinen’s 5-0 shutout victory over the Penguins in Pittsburgh last night. The other occasion, on December 13 and 14, saw Linus Ullmark record two wins in a row. Like Meriläinen this weekend, Ullmark’s first win was also a shutout — a 3-0 win over the Carolina Hurricanes followed by a 3-2 overtime win over the Pittsburgh Penguins.

The Senators will return to the ice on Tuesday when they travel to Long Island to take on the New York Islanders for the third and final time this season at 7:30 p.m. ET.

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