Stars finding winning recipe, but it's not one you can write down

It's a good thing these games aren't played on paper … the skating would be horrible.
No, but seriously folks, the Stars proved a little something on Monday. In defeating the Arizona Coyotes, 5-4, Dallas accomplished about a dozen things that shouldn't have happened and learned something in the process. By defying the expected logic of the game based on previous performances (the paper), the Stars showed they have a ton of ability on the ice, and in their heads.
"It's nice that we're finding ways to win different types of games," Stars coach Jim Montgomery said. "The power play came through, the penalty kill came through, and there's a lot of positives to build on. … I just liked our mental poise."

The Stars have been through a lot in this five-game winning streak. They beat Winnipeg before their All-Star Break, and then came back and won games against Buffalo, Minnesota and Nashville. Each game was tight, and the Stars excelled at keeping scoring chances down, getting great goaltending, and manufacturing gritty goals.
So the plan for Monday was the same against an Arizona team that has been improving. The Coyotes and Stars are both playing low-scoring games, and Arizona entered the game with the best penalty kill in the NHL. So, the paper plan was for more patience in a low-scoring game.
But a five-minute major penalty on Brett Ritchie for boarding and knocking Alex Goligoski out of the game in the second period changed the plan.

The Stars had to hustle to kill the penalty, and in the process, drew two penalties from the Coyotes. That led to Dallas scoring three goals in 71 seconds -- two on the power play -- to seize control.
And while that was shocking, things got even more electric after the Stars took a 4-2 lead with 16:21 remaining to play. Arizona came back and tied the game at 4-4 with 12:10 on the game clock.
And once again, the Stars had to react.
The Stars have been a different team mentally after the break -- more calm, more focused. Players and coaches said they all looked inside during the down time and now believe they have found their groove.
"I think we're taking ownership of our own games personally, and our game as a whole and as a group," said captain Jamie Benn. "Early on in this one, it wasn't pretty. But there were players stepping up in the dressing room and owning up to their poor play and that's good to see.
"Accountability is great. We're all backing each other up and finding ways to win games."

Defenseman John Klingberg added: "I think the players are taking more space in the locker room here to get each other going. I think that's how you become a team. You have to be able to tell the player next to you that he has to do a better job if he has to do a better job, or that we have to come together as a team here before the third period, and I think that's what we did today."
Montgomery said the coaches are giving players the space to do that, and he likes the inner strength that comes from players holding each other accountable.
"Once you have that happening, that's when you start creating that belief," Montgomery said. "Teammates never want to let teammates down."
And those are the things you just can't plan out on paper. Those are the things that make the game both erratic and exhilarating.
The Coyotes needed this game to add to their miracle push for a playoff spot. They were flustered when they unraveled and gave up those three goals. But they also didn't back down. They reloaded, and they came back and tied the game.
That would have been a great time for a tired Stars team playing its third game in four nights to simply lay down. They would have been 4-1-0 in five games and still pretty excited heading into a five-game road trip.

But they didn't do that. They fought even harder, received a huge play from Alexander Radulov, Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin that led to the game-winning goal, and walked out with a memorable win.
"We've found a way to win games in all different forms during the streak, and tonight was no different," said center Jason Spezza, who had a key assist on a power-play goal and went 10-1 in the faceoff circle.
"We battled back, and got a big goal from the big boys, and that's what you need. I thought it was an up-and-down-the-lineup-contribution game, and one we can feel good about."
The Stars currently sit 28-21-4, good for 60 points. They are in third place in the Central Division, four points up on the first wild-card playoff spot and eight points ahead of the postseason cutoff mark. That's a place they have worked hard to attain, and it's a place that is as much in their heads as it is on the standings sheet.
"There's an incredible difference," Montgomery said of the transformation during this five-game winning streak. "You just sense it in the room and on the bench. There's a belief and a trust in each other right now that `we can.' That attitude of 'we can' is beginning to permeate through everybody."
Now, if they can just find a way to bottle it -- wait, that's a recipe that you can't just write down. It's one you have to keep in your head.
This story was not subject to the approval of the National Hockey League or Dallas Stars Hockey Club.
Mike Heika is a Senior Staff Writer for DallasStars.com and has covered the Stars since 1994. Follow him on Twitter @MikeHeika.