Offense steals spotlight, but Dobby is Stars' difference maker in opener

DALLAS -- Anton Khudobin was maybe the Stars' most important player in the playoffs last season. He picked up that torch on opening night.
While Joe Pavelski posted a four-point night and the power play went 5-for-8, Khudobin once again set the foundation to allow that to happen. He stopped 34 shots to post his ninth career shutout, and he allowed the Stars to get their legs under them in their first game of the season.

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"When your team is off a little bit, as we were in the first, you're going to need your goaltender -- and Dobby was great, he made the big saves," Stars coach Rick Bowness said. "The power play gave us confidence but Dobby's play gave us confidence, as well. We certainly needed Dobby in that first period."
Stars goalie Ben Bishop had offseason knee surgery and is not expected back until sometime in March or April. That means the 34-year-old Khudobin will have to carry the weight. Khudobin did just that, playing 25 of 27 playoff games in the bubble in Edmonton, so the Stars know he can do it.

"Obviously, Dobby was making unbelievable saves in the first and throughout the whole game. He gave us a good chance in the beginning. That's basically why we were 0-0 in the first period," said Stars winger Alexander Radulov. "They came out pretty hard and we could feel that they had some games already. That was the difference. Dobby did his job and he deserved the shutout. He was there for us tonight."
Khudobin has been a career backup, so this was his first ever start in a season opener. It also was his 100th career win, so the night was pretty special. The Stars
unveiled their Western Conference Championship banner
before the game, and Khudobin was a big part of putting that in place, and he said he was proud of that accomplishment.

"Maybe we're not champions last year, but at the same time, it still gives us a little bit more emotions, I would say, just because you're still champions of the conference," Khudobin said. "It goes under your belt, it goes in your history of hockey, it goes to your museum at home. It's pretty special."
Just as it was special when the crowd started cheering their hero. Dallas is one of the few NHL teams to allow fans, and they had an announced crowd of 4,214 at American Airlines Center. As Khudobin neared his shutout, the crowd erupted in chants of "Dob-by, Dob-by, Dob-by."
"It was unbelievable, to be honest," Khudobin said.
"I really appreciate that they are cheering for me. That was special moment, to be honest. I didn't know it was going to be my 100th win today. They cheered me, and I really appreciate it. I heard them. Trust me, I had goosebumps about it."

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Power play off to scorching start

The Stars went 5-for-8 on the power play and took control with a 5-on-3 early in the second period. Alexander Radulov made a great cross-ice pass to Joe Pavelski for the first goal, and then Pavelski made a great shot/pass that Radulov redirected in for the second goal just a minute later.

Radulov works a lot of time in practice deflecting pucks, and Pavelski has a history of setting up in front of the net on the power play. But the Stars have a lot of options there, as Denis Gurianov and Joel Kiviranta also tipped in goals, and Pavelski and Radulov moved to other areas on the man advantage.

"I think it always enhances the power play when you have moving parts and you aren't glued to one spot," Pavelski said. "We have a lot of guys that can play numerous spots. You try to get in your spots when you can, and your sets, but there are going to be times when it's broke. Tonight, there were a lot of power plays so there were times when you need to slide in and out of certain ones. It was good to have the puck a little bit."
For Radulov, he seemed to be able to jump right in and use his size and skill.
Asked about his goal, which he redirected between his legs, Radulov said: "It was a good battle in the corner there and a good stop by Pavs on the blue line. I tried to get in front of the net and I saw the lane and Pavs saw me and he kind of shot it. The guy was on my back so I tried to redirect it into the net and it went upstairs. It's good, it was a little bit of luck, but I'll take it."

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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, and listen to his podcast.