3 takeaways from Knights' win: Defense shuts down Stars

DALLAS – The Golden Knights knew the Dallas Stars would push back Wednesday.

The Knights just pushed harder.

They weathered a physical start and shut down the Stars for a 3-1 win in Game 2 of their first-round playoff series at American Airlines Center on Wednesday.

The Knights are up 2-0 in the series. Game 3 is at T-Mobile Arena on Saturday.

Right wing Jonathan Marchessault, defenseman Noah Hanifin and center Jack Eichel scored for the Knights. Goaltender Logan Thompson made 20 saves in his second playoff start.

Dallas was looking to respond to its 4-3 loss in Game 1. Stars center Matt Duchene said Wednesday morning his team needed to be more aggressive.

That resulted in Dallas looking to hit everything that moved. The Stars finished 31st in hits per game in the regular season with 17.8. They had 24 in the first period Wednesday.

The Knights came back with shots of their own. They had 25 hits after 20 minutes. They weren’t rattled when Dallas came out swinging.

The Stars did land the first significant blow when left wing Jason Robertson scored a power-play goal with 3:13 remaining in the first period.

The defending Stanley Cup champions weren’t rattled.

They responded to the Stars’ pressure with a calm defensive game.

Sticks were in the right place. Breakouts were clean. No one was out of place.

The Knights were rewarded 1:22 after Robertson’s goal when center Jack Eichel received a stretch pass from left wing Ivan Barbashev. Eichel held onto the puck long enough to get Dallas goaltender Jake Oettinger out of position before dropping it to Marchessault for a game-tying goal.

The Knights kept it up in the second period. They forced the Stars to the outside and didn’t allow many quality chances.

That led to the Knights breaking through late in the frame. Hanifin scored with 1:07 left in the second to give his team a 2-1 lead.

The Knights locked things down from there. It was a performance reminiscent of the ones they had last postseason. They controlled the game with their defense and played well in front of their goaltender.

They’re going home with a 2-0 series lead as a result.

Here are three takeaways from the win:

1. Goalies trade saves

Both netminders stepped up with big stops to keep the game tied in the second period.

Oettinger robbed defenseman Shea Theodore with a diving glove save with 5:37 left. Thompson responded 42 seconds later when he stopped Dallas center Wyatt Johnston with a left pad save.

2. Impressive defense

The Knights gave up 11 shots on goal in the first period, but settled in after that.

Dallas mustered only 10 the final 40 minutes. The Stars, trailing by one the entire third period, didn’t have a shot on goal the final six minutes of the game.

3. Martinez returns

Defenseman Alec Martinez joined the lineup Wednesday in place of defenseman Nic Hague, who was out with a lower-body injury.

Martinez, who was a healthy scratch in Game 1 on Monday, finished with one shot on goal in 15:50 of ice time.

It was the three-time Stanley Cup champion’s 126th career playoff game and 62nd with the Knights.