The Dallas Stars had scarcely left the ice after Tuesday’s 3-2 loss to Colorado when their next problem became clear. Wyatt Johnston, a late scratch because of an illness, will not travel to Denver for Wednesday’s rematch, coach Glen Gulutzan announced afterward.
The Stars therefore head into the next game carrying two related frustrations: they need to finish better, and they must redistribute Johnston’s minutes without assuming one productive night from Tyler Seguin solves everything.
The absence changes Dallas’ immediate options before the puck drops. Johnston’s absence is not a diagnosis of a long-term issue, and Tuesday was only Dallas’ sixth game. It is, however, an immediate constraint for a team that already had little room for wasted chances.
This is a short-term test, for now. Gulutzan said Johnston would miss the trip; he did not announce a longer absence. Dallas needs an answer for the next game rather than a verdict on its center depth. That keeps the task specific: contributions from the available forwards, without making one missing player the explanation for every chance that went unconverted.
Seguin made the first adjustment look manageable. He produced both Dallas goals, beginning with the tying play late in the opening period. His attempt to send the puck toward Mikko Rantanen was redirected by Artturi Lehkonen’s skate and wound up behind Mackenzie Blackwood.
In the third, Seguin sent the puck from below the goal line to Roope Hintz, who scored from the left circle at 3:17. That made the score 3-2 with 16:43 remaining.
The problem is what followed. Dallas never found the equalizer, despite enough time and enough territorial pressure to make the ending uncomfortable for Colorado. Seguin’s two points kept the Stars in the game; they did not supply the additional finisher the lineup required. Dallas needs more than one forward to make the additional responsibility manageable.
The Stars did generate the sort of opportunities that can win a close game. Dallas held a 26-25 edge in shots on goal and led Colorado 59-47 in total attempts. But Blackwood stopped 24 of 26 shots, including a breakaway chance for Sam Steel at 17:37 of the second period and a Justin Hryckowian one-timer at 19:36.
Each took away a chance to reduce Colorado’s 3-1 lead before the intermission.
Dallas converted its only power play. Colorado also scored once with an advantage, across three opportunities. The Stars were not overwhelmed; they were edged in the moments when a close game demanded a decisive touch.
Oettinger stopped 22 of 25 shots, Miro Heiskanen added two assists and Hintz scored, yet Mikko Rantanen did not register a shot on net and Jason Robertson had two. Team reporting also noted that Dallas had scored only once at 5-on-5 across its previous 140 minutes.
