Alexander the Great: Radulov lifts Stars past Canucks in OT

The Dallas Stars made their first journey into overtime this season, and Alexander Radulov made sure it was a success. Radulov scored 2:32 into the extra period to lift the Dallas Stars to a 2-1 victory over the Vancouver Canucks on Monday night at Rogers Arena.
Radulov, who also had an assist in regulation, beat Canucks goaltender Jacob Markstrom with a wrist shot from the right circle on a two-on-one rush with Mattias Janmark to give the Stars their second straight win on their current road trip.

"I was looking to make a play to [Janmark] at first but then it wasn't there, so I took a chance to take a shot," Radulov said. "It went in. It's good."
It was the second straight game Radulov has scored the game-winning goal for the Stars. Radulov, one of the Stars' key offseason acquisitions, has been on a roll lately, tallying six points (three goals, three assists) in the past three games.

"What I like best about Radulov is he is not afraid of the moment," said Stars coach Ken Hitchcock. "It's been four or five games now where he is not afraid of the moment. That's why we brought him here."
Ben Bishop was superb in goal for the Stars, stopping 38 of 39 shots in a game where the shots and shot attempts tilted Vancouver's way. Tyler Seguin scored in regulation for the Stars who improved to 7-5-0 on the season and to 2-2-0 on their current road trip.
"It was a hard game," Radulov said. "I don't think we played the way we can. [Bishop] was huge for us and we get the win. That's huge."
Jacob Markstrom stopped 27 of 29 shots, and Sam Gagner scored the lone goal for the Canucks who had a four-game winning streak snapped and are now 6-3-2 on the season.

"I thought we did enough to get the two points tonight," said Gagner. "We'll settle for one and keep pushing forward here."
Bishop and the Dallas penalty kill came up big in a scoreless first period when the Canucks had a 16-9 shots advantage. Six of Bishop's 16 saves came with Vancouver on three power plays that the Stars were able to thwart.
Gemel Smith had the best chance of the first period for the Stars, getting off a shot on a shorthanded breakaway and drawing a penalty as time expired.
That Smith play led to a Dallas power play early in the second and Bishop had to come up big, stopping Vancouver's Bo Horvat on a shorthanded breakaway 65 seconds into the period.

The Stars went on another power play later in the second and cashed in when Radulov set up Seguin who scored off a one-timer from the left circle to give the Stars a 1-0 lead at the 3:11 mark.
Bishop continued to produce big saves, making a nice poke-check on a close-range chance by Thomas Vanek, getting a pad on a redirection by Alex Biega and stopping a wide-open bid by Derek Dorsett from the slot.
Markstrom made a huge save late in the second period to keep the Canucks within one goal, turning away a great chance by Radulov with 28 seconds remaining.
Vancouver tied the game 1-1 at 6:00 into the third when Gagner scored on the rebound of a Vanek shot.

In overtime, Horvat broke in alone on net and got off a great chance, but his shot rang off the post. A little more than two minutes later, Radulov scored the game-winner for the Stars and gave them another road victory.
"It was big. Every game on the road is," said Bishop. "We played well, but it still wasn't our best effort, and we have a lot we can improve on. But we found a way in the end."

Notes

Video: Radulov wins it in OT

What's Next

Video: Radulov's overtime winner lifts Stars to 2-1 win
The Stars wrap up their five-game road trip Thursday in Winnipeg. This will be the first of four meetings between the Stars and Jets this season. The Jets, who defeated Pittsburgh 7-1 on Sunday, are 5-3-2 on the season.

Stars Lineup

Jamie Benn - Tyler Seguin - Alexander Radulov
Antoine Roussel - Jason Spezza - Brett Ritchie
Remi Elie - Mattias Janmark - Devin Shore
Gemel Smith - Radek Faksa - Tyler Pitlick
Marc Methot - John Klingberg
Dan Hamhuis - Greg Pateryn
Jamie Oleksiak - Esa Lindell
Ben Bishop
Kari Lehtonen
Scratched:Julius Honka
Injured:Martin Hanzal (lower body), Stephen Johns (concussion symptoms)
This story was not subject to approval of the National Hockey League or Dallas Stars Hockey Club. Mark Stepneski is an independent writer whose posts on DallasStars.com reflect his own opinions and do not represent official statements from the Dallas Stars. You can follow Mark on Twitter @StarsInsideEdge.