Heika's Take: Down but not out, Stars come away with huge win

DALLAS --On a night when the Stars honored Mexican Heritage, they treated fans at American Airlines Center to a game that was "muy loco."

The Stars peppered the LA Kings with 43 shots on goal (a season high for the best shot suppression team in the NHL), got goals from unexpected places in Ryan Suter, Luke Glendening and Alexander Radulov, and found a way to get a key tally from a struggling power play at just the right moment.
All of it came together in a huge 4-3 win over the Kings, who sit just two points ahead of them in the Western Conference standings.
"A lot of desperation tonight," said Suter, who had a goal and an assist. "We knew that team was good. They had gotten beat the game before and we knew they were going to come hard. We were prepared. We were ready. When you get down 3-1 against a team like that, they can really shut you down defensively. For us to find ways to score was good for us."

It was a perfect night for Radulov to get his 500th career regular-season game. A legend in the KHL, the 35-year-old started in the NHL with Nashville in 2006. He eventually went back to Russia, came back to Nashville for a brief stint, and then returned to Russia again. In 2015, he returned to the NHL in Montreal and has played the past five seasons with the Stars. Of his 500 games, 270 have been with Dallas.
"That's the best I've seen him skate," said Stars coach Rick Bowness. "He had a great jump in his legs tonight and when he's skating like that, he's a very effective player."
Radulov is described as a whirling dervish of a player who's as unpredictable to teammates as he is to the opposition. A four-time MVP in the KHL, he's been an impactful scorer for Dallas. However, the points and goals haven't been plentiful this season, so when he was able to create a ton of scoring chances and cash in on a power play late in the second period, there was much joy for everyone.
"It's a great number, but I was trying not to think about it because it's time to worry about winning the hockey game," Radulov said, finding a way to combine all the motivation and fun. "That's the most important thing to us right now, especially if you look at the standings. LA is right there with us. It's nice. It's always nice to get those numbers, but I was trying to focus on the game."

Radulov now has three goals and 15 assists for 18 points in 47 games this season, a disappointment from a statistical standpoint, but he continues to work hard and bring energy, and that was clear on Wednesday. The burly winger fought for an early scoring chance and helped inject energy into the team's fourth line with Jacob Peterson and Joel Kiviranta, and then made two big plays that helped swing the game.
With Dallas trying to stagger back from a couple of unexpected goals against and a 3-2 deficit late in the second period, Radulov was screening the net and trying to tip a shot from Suter. The puck sailed in with 59 seconds left in the period, and the Stars had new life.
Radek Faksa then earned a high-sticking penalty and Dallas went to work on the power play. Suter banged a shot off the end boards, and Radulov was Johnny on the Spot to dump the puck in for the game-winner with just 12.2 seconds on the clock in the middle frame.

It was a frenetic experience in a frenetic game, and it sort of encapsulated what the Stars have been going through this season. They dominated scoring chances early, but then made a couple of mistakes to give up a couple of odd goals. But just when you thought they might be on their way to slipping on the ice, they dug in and found a way.
"Even though we were down 3-1, we were very confident in the way we were playing," Bowness said. "We were controlling play and getting tons of chances, so we just had to stay with the program. You play the right way and do those things and we got rewarded tonight."

The Stars are now 30-20-2, good for 63 points. The Kings are 29-19-7, good for 65. LA has played two more games, so the Stars are in a good place. However, the Kings are also second place in the Pacific Division, while the Stars are fifth in the Central. All of that means Dallas needs every point it can get. With 29 games left in the season, the Stars could be battling the Kings, Oilers, Golden Knights, Wild and the Predators, among others.
"We're going to chase these guys all year," Bowness said. "We're in a playoff battle. I know they're in the other division, but you look at how tight the race is right now with Vegas, us, Anaheim and Nashville. Somebody's going to miss the playoffs and have a really good year."
And after beating the Kings, the Stars now go on a three-game road trip to Winnipeg, Minnesota and Nashville beginning Friday.
"We're in the hunt with them so it's important," Bowness said.
This story was not subject to the approval of the National Hockey League or Dallas Stars Hockey Club.
Mike Heikais a Senior Staff Writer for DallasStars.com and has covered the Stars since 1994. Follow him on Twitter @MikeHeika.