The Stars played well, but it wasn't enough to win Game 3 of their playoff series, and now, they find themselves down 2-1.
The Stars outshot the Predators 42-28, had an 89-47 advantage in shot attempts and a 28-12 edge in high-danger chances. The Stars had 11 shots on four power-play chances, but couldn't cash in on any of them. Some credit has to go to Nashville goaltender Pekka Rinne, who was superb in making 40 saves.
"We need to find a way to score more goals," said Stars coach Jim Montgomery. "You've got a 5-on-3 for a minute and a half, you got to score. That's what your best players are paid to do."
There was no scoring in an intense, physical first period that had a combined 30 hits between the two teams (20 for Dallas, 10 for Nashville). The Predators had the better of play early in the period, and the Stars pushed back late in the frame.
Predators forward Rocco Grimaldi opened the scoring at 3:29 of the second, beating Stars goalie Ben Bishop with a shot from the right half-wall off the rush.
"It's unfortunate. It's a bad goal," said Bishop. "It's one you've got to have. It's just one I got caught in between. I was going to go punch it out and then corral it, and it caught the inside of the hand and went in. It's unfortunate, but it happens."
The Stars had a chance to get on the board with 1:29 of five-on-three power play time a few minutes later, put six shots on goal during the two-man advantage but couldn't crack Rinne.
The Predators made it a 2-0 game when Nick Bonino chipped the puck out of his end to Filip Forsberg, who had gotten behind the Dallas defense, and Forsberg broke in on net and slipped the puck past Bishop at the 14:35 mark.
But the Stars cut the lead in half less than three minutes later. John Klingberg sent a stretch pass to Mats Zuccarello, who held off Predators defender Ryan Ellis and beat Rinne through the legs to make it a 2-1 game at 17:11 of the second.
The Stars tied the game at 8:15 of the third when Jamie Benn and Alexander Radulov won a puck battle behind the Nashville net and Benn set up Seguin who scored from close range, and it was a 2-2 game.
The Stars came close to taking the lead 31 seconds later, but Rinne made a spectacular save on a point-blank bid by Benn to keep it a 2-2 game.
And then the Predators took the lead three minutes later. After an icing call on the Stars, Kyle Turris won an offensive zone draw, Mikael Granlund took a pass from Dante Fabbro, skated up to the right point and scored off a shot from the right point that Bishop said deflected off traffic and into the net, and it was a 3-2 game at the 11:41 mark.
The Stars pulled Bishop with 2:11 remaining for the extra attacker but couldn't get the equalizer. Now it's on to Game 4 Wednesday at the AAC.
"Never get too high, never get too low," said Montgomery. "It's 2-1. I think we've been the better team two of three games. Keep playing that, and usually the hockey gods get back on your side."
