Stars halt three-game skid with win over Kings

Blake Comeau and Tyler Pitlick both scored their first goals of the season as the Dallas Stars defeated the Los Angeles Kings, 4-2, at American Airlines Center on Tuesday night and ended a three-game skid.
Comeau and Pitlick, two guys the Stars are counting on to provide some depth, had not scored a goal through the first seven games of the season. That changed Tuesday night with Comeau staking the Stars to a 1-0 lead in the first and Pitlick scoring on the power play to extend the lead to 4-2 in the third.
"It feels really good actually," said Comeau, a free-agent signing this summer. "You come into a new team, you want to contribute right away, and you put pressure on yourself. So, it was nice to get that first one but, more importantly, it was nice to contribute on a winning night as well."

WATCH: [All Stars vs. Kings highlights]
John Klingberg and Jason Spezza both had one goal and one assist and Devin Shore chipped in two assists for the Stars, who improved to 4-4-0 on the season. Goaltender Ben Bishop was sharp in net, stopping 31 of 33 shots.
The Kings (2-6-1) lost their fifth straight game.
"We did some good things tonight, but we need a lot more," said Kings coach John Stevens.
The Stars scored the only goal of the first. Jason Dickinson circled behind the Los Angeles net and put the puck in the slot where Comeau scored off a wrist shot to make it a 1-0 game at the 5:14 mark.

The Kings came out with some good pressure early in the second period and had some good chances, but the Stars were able to extend the lead to 2-0 at the 8:59 mark. Justin Dowling put a shot on net off the rush and Spezza scored on the rebound to push the Dallas lead to 2-0.
The Kings finally got on the board at 14:04 of the second when Drew Doughty's stretch pass set up Anze Kopitar on a breakaway and the Los Angeles captain scored on a backhand shot to cut the Dallas lead to 2-1.
The Stars answered quickly, scoring 22 seconds later on Klingberg's point shot that deflected off a Kings defender and into the net and it was 3-1 Dallas.
The Kings cut the lead to 3-2 with another goal off a stretch pass. Sean Walker set up Tyler Toffoli who scored from the slot at 17:09 of the second.
The Stars pushed the lead to 4-2 with a power-play goal at 4:23 of the third period. Tyler Seguin put a shot on net and Pitlick scored off the scramble in front of the Los Angeles net.
Bishop came up with a huge save to keep it a 4-2 game, making a slick glove save on Nate Thompson backhand shot at 8:42 of the third.
The Kings pulled goaltender Jonathan Quick late in the game and thought they scored to pull within one with 37 seconds left, but the goal was waved off after officials determined it was batted in with a hand.

Turning point

After the Kings got on the board late in the second period to cut the Dallas lead to 2-1, the Stars answered with a goal 22 seconds later to make it a 3-1 game and put a halt to any hope Los Angeles had to build some momentum. Brett Ritchie threw a big hit along the boards to force a turnover and Devin Shore set up John Klingberg, whose shot from the point found the back of the net.
"A big hit by Ritchie creates that turnover that allows us to get that goal and get the momentum back right away," Stars coach Jim Montgomery said.

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Players of the game

Blake Comeau, Dallas: Stars forward scored his first goal of the season, led the Stars in shots on goal (four), shot attempts (seven), and scoring chances (four).
Ben Bishop, Dallas: Stars goaltender was sharp in goal, stopping 31 of 33 shots to win his third game of the season.
John Klingberg, Dallas: Stars defenseman scored the game-winning goal, recorded one assist and logged 24:53 of ice time.

They said it

"We knew [the Kings] were on a bit of a skid themselves, so we knew we were going to get a desperate team. They have a lot of experience, they're a heavy team. There were ups and downs throughout the game, but we found a way to win, we found a way to get some timely goals and timely saves from [Stars goaltender Ben Bishop]. There's some things we did well and some things we have to clean up. It's a step in the right direction for sure." - Stars forward Blake Comeau on the win
"I was still on the ice (this morning), and Seggy pulled me off and said, 'Get off the ice, you're going to need your rest tonight, you are playing with us.' It's a good feeling that they want me there and that they trust me to play. I thought I got better as it went on, I guess. I was little nervous playing with those guys, they are good players, top players, just trying to get in on the forecheck and be physical and hang on to the puck." - Stars forward Tyler Pitlick on playing on the top line with Tyler Seguin and Jamie Benn
"I enjoyed the 11 forwards tonight. I felt I could get everybody involved in the game and everybody was into the game. The matchups got a little more difficult as I felt they were holding [Anze] Kopitar's line a little longer than I expected a couple of times which enabled them to get some matchups that they wanted. But all in all, I liked it. The seven defensemen didn't seem to work all that well though." - Stars coach Jim Montgomery on playing 11 forwards and seven defensemen in the game
"You want to win games, and every time you don't, you know frustration level builds a little bit, but we can't beat ourselves up too much. I thought this was a step in the right direction, but we can't be satisfied with getting close. We've got to take the next step, build on some good things that were happening tonight."- Kings captain Anze Kopitar

Medical matters

Forward Alexander Radulov missed his second straight game with a lower-body injury. He is day to day.
Forward Valeri Nichushkin, who has missed the last three games with a lower-body injury, took part in Tuesday morning's optional skate. He is day to day.
Stars coach Jim Montgomery said defenseman Stephen Johns is targeting Sunday's game in Detroit as a possible return. Johns hasn't played this season due to post-traumatic headaches.

Stat pack

What's next

The Stars conclude their three-game homestand when they take on the Anaheim Ducks on Thursday. This is the second of three meetings between the Stars and Ducks. The Stars won the first meeting, rallying from a 3-0 deficit to win, 5-3, at American Airlines Center on Oct. 13.

Stars lineup

Jamie Benn - Tyler Seguin - Tyler Pitlick
Devin Shore - Jason Spezza - Justin Dowling
Mattias Janmark - Radek Faksa - Blake Comeau
Jason Dickinson - Brett Ritchie
Esa Lindell - John Klingberg
Marc Methot - Miro Heiskanen
Julius Honka - Roman Polak/Connor Carrick
Ben Bishop
Anton Khudobin
Scratched:Gemel SmithInjured:Alexander Radulov (lower body), Valeri Nichushkin (lower body), Stephen Johns (post-traumatic headaches), Martin Hanzal (back)

This story was not subject to the approval of the National Hockey League or Dallas Stars Hockey Club.
Mark Stepneski has covered the Stars for DallasStars.com since 2012. Follow him on Twitter @StarsInsideEdge.