A 3-1 score can make a hockey game look comfortably settled. Dallas’ victory over Columbus on Saturday was more precarious than polished. The Stars built a 2-0 lead in the first period, produced only eight shots afterward and needed Jake Oettinger to stop 24 of 25 Columbus shots before Arttu Hyry’s empty-net goal with one second left supplied the final margin.
Dallas won at American Airlines Center, but its 17-shot total should be treated as an outcome to survive rather than a standard to pursue. The opening period made the number look respectable. The next 40 minutes made it look thin.
Dallas made its first two-goal cushion with nine opening-period shots. Columbus goaltender Jet Greaves was assessed a two-minute penalty for sending the puck over the glass at 1:43 of the first period. Mikko Rantanen scored 33 seconds later, at 2:16, with Wyatt Johnston and Jason Robertson credited with assists. Dallas converted its first power play and had a lead before three minutes had elapsed.
Thomas Harley added a second goal at 19:59 of the period, with Hyry and Miro Heiskanen receiving the assists. Dallas had nine shots in the opening 20 minutes and scored twice; Columbus also had nine shots but remained scoreless.
That is the sort of first period teams happily accept: efficient finishing, a successful power play and a cushion that survived a second period with no goals from either team.
Special teams strengthened the case. Dallas finished 1-for-2 on the power play, while Columbus went 0-for-1. The Blue Jackets had one man advantage all night, and Oettinger stopped all three shots he faced during it. Rantanen’s goal was especially valuable because it converted an early Columbus mistake instead of leaving Dallas to manufacture every bit of offense at even strength.
Then the attack receded. Dallas had five shots in the second period and three in the third. Columbus recorded nine in each of the first two periods and seven in the third, finishing with a 25-17 advantage. The period split is the important part: Dallas held the scoreboard while its shot production fell from nine to five to three.
Damon Severson’s goal at 6:21 of the third period, assisted by Zach Werenski and Kent Johnson, reduced the lead to 2-1. At that point, the scoreboard accurately described the margin but overstated the comfort. Columbus had seven third-period shots to Dallas’ three overall, and Dallas did not add its last shot until the Blue Jackets had pulled Greaves.
The Stars were carrying a one-goal lead into the final second, not cruising toward a broader offensive separation.
Oettinger gave that lead room to stand. He stopped 18 shots across the first two periods and finished with a .960 save percentage. His workload was spread through the game rather than concentrated in a single late scramble: Columbus registered nine shots in each of the first two periods while Dallas produced nine and five.
That is a strong goaltending performance, and it is also a sign that the score concealed a difficult balance of chances on the shot clock.
