DeSmith makes 46 saves, Hintz and Rantanen each get a goal and an assist, Dallas beats Calgary 5-2
Dallas Stars goalie Casey DeSmith, left, grabs the puck away from Calgary Flames' Mikael Backlund during first period NHL hockey action in Calgary on Thursday, March 27, 2025. (Jeff McIntosh/The Canadian Press via AP)[ASSOCIATED PRESS/Jeff McIntosh]
CALGARY, Alberta (AP) — Casey DeSmith made 46 saves, Roope Hintz and Mikko Rantanen each had a goal and an assist and the Dallas Stars beat the Calgary Flames 5-2 on Thursday night.
Wyatt Johnston and Mikael Granlund also scored and Matt Duchene added an empty-net goal for the Stars, winners of four games in a row.
DeSmith got the start for Dallas after Jake Oettinger made 42 saves in the previous night’s 4-3 win over the Edmonton Oilers.
Nazem Kadri scored twice for the Flames.
Flames starter Dustin Wolf stopped 14 of 18 shots in the loss. Calgary captain Mikael Backlund returned to the lineup after six games out with an upper-body injury.
Trailing 1-0, Calgary had two potential goals called off before Kadri’s stood.
Peter DeBoer won a coach’s challenge for goaltender interference after Blake Coleman’s wrist shot beat DeSmith at 5:30 of the second period.
A league review determined Calgary’s Connor Zary kicked the puck into the Dallas net at 14:02 of the first.
The Stars weathered Calgary’s third-period storm for a second win in as many nights after holding off the Oilers the previous day.
The Flames couldn’t produce a fifth straight comeback win despite a spirited effort. Needed a goal from a power play midway through the period to step up the pressure on Dallas.
Rantanen’s goal that made it 4-2 deflated the Flames after Calgary pressed hard in the third period.
The Stars have lost just eight games in regulation since Jan. 1. Dallas improved to 17-4-3 since Jan. 24.
On Saturday, the Flames are in Edmonton and the Stars play the first of two straight road games against the Seattle Kraken.
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