MONTREAL — In the cathedral of the NHL and under the brightest lights in Canada, the Dallas Stars leaned on their leaders during a 5-2 win over the Montreal Canadiens.
Joe Pavelski had a hat trick and added an assist, while Jamie Benn had two assists to pace the Stars, who are now winners in four of their five games. Jason Robertson (one goal, one assist) and Esa Lindell (one goal) also scored for Dallas. Roope Hintz had two assists for his second multi-point game of the campaign.
Jake Oettinger made 32 saves to earn his fourth win of the season. The Stars play in Ottawa on Monday, and finish their road trip in Boston on Tuesday.
Regular-season stages don’t shine as much limelight as a Saturday night in Montreal on Hockey Night in Canada. A packed Bell Centre that breathed in and out on every turnover, every scoring chance offered a soundtrack seldom found around the league. A plucky, free-wheeling Canadiens squad ensured the home crowd would be entertained, but guaranteed little else.
The platform gave the Stars a chance to bounce back from their only loss, an overtime setback Thursday night in Toronto.
The Stars captain, and their oldest player did their part.
It was Pavelski’s sixth career hat trick and first since joining the Stars in 2019. He was one point away from tying his career-high, set nine months ago against the Seattle Kraken. Pavelski now has seven points, tied with linemates Hintz and Robertson for the team lead.
Pavelski scored on the power play in the first period, a quick and expertly angled backhand that beat Jake Allen on the short side. It was a play that Pavelski rehearses every single practice. In the 20 minutes before his teammates join him on the ice, Pavelski will take a handful of pucks and go to the crease. He’ll blindly backhand them into the net before moving to other parts of the ice.
That goal on Saturday is simply the receipt for hours spent on the practice ice.
Pavelski also scored just 18 seconds into the second period, bashing home a pass from Hintz in the slot. Hintz created a turnover on the forecheck, and Pavelski slammed it home. He finished off the hat trick about seven minutes into the third period by gathering a loose puck at the blue line and fending off two Canadiens.
As Pavelski celebrated and two hats landed on the Bell Centre ice, two Canadiens crashed into the end boards.
At 38 years old, Pavelski remains a wonder.
He led the Stars in scoring last year, when he also had a career-high for points. Signed to a one-year contract this season, he’s a bargain at $5.5 million when he likely could have commanded around $8 million in free agency. He’s part of one of the best lines in the NHL, a trio that carried the Stars into the playoffs in the spring.
As he ages, Pavelski will continue to rewrite the history books. Only Alex Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby have more game-opening goals among active players. Ovechkin, Crosby and Steven Stamkos are the only players with more multi-point games since Pavelski entered the league in 2006.
The Stars also benefitted from a throwback effort submitted by Benn, who was present early around the net and was a key part in Pavelski’s first goal, Robertson’s goal and Lindell’s goal. The two points were the first ones of the season for Benn.
