Late in the third period Thursday night, Jamie Benn had a milestone sitting right there in front of him - and then it disappeared.
A David Perron power-play goal briefly looked like the one that would push Benn to his 1,000th career point, with Benn set to get the second assist. But the play was ruled a kick-in on the ice, wiping it away before it could count. By then, the Dallas Stars were already deep in trouble, trailing the Winnipeg Jets 8-3 at American Airlines Center.
So Benn stays at 999 career points, all of them with Dallas. Mike Modano is still the only player in franchise history to reach 1,000, finishing with 1,359.
The night only got rougher from there in the eyes of the Stars captain. Benn said the loss was unacceptable and made clear that every player needed to take a hard look at himself after a messy performance. His slashing penalty at 16:54 of the second period handed Winnipeg a power play, and Mark Scheifele scored 1:18 later to give the Jets a 4-3 lead, their first lead of the night.
In his official postgame interview, Benn pointed to an honest conversation in the locker room and the momentum Dallas let slip away in the second period. The players met without their coaches for at least 10 minutes, The Dallas Morning News reported.
“I think it was just something that needed to happen for our group,” Benn said of the meeting.
Benn’s stat line was quiet: one shot, a minus-1 rating and two penalty minutes in 13:48. He skated on a line with Wyatt Johnston and Mikko Rantanen.
His last point came Nov. 7 in a 4-3 win over the San Jose Sharks, when Roope Hintz worked the puck out from below the goal line and found Benn in the slot. Thursday was Dallas’ first game since then.
Benn has 3 goals and 4 assists in 18 games this season, his 18th in the NHL. The Stars selected him in the fifth round of the 2007 draft with the 129th pick.
Dallas returns home to face the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday at 7 p.m. CT, then hosts the Florida Panthers on Sunday at 7 p.m. CT.
In Other News...
Stars Let Conference Rival Turn A Strong Start Into A Rout
Dallas had a strong start at American Airlines Center, but the night quickly tilted the other way in a matchup with a familiar Central Division rival. Mark Scheifele scored twice for Winnipeg, and the Jets left with an 8-3 win that moved them to 9-8-3 while Dallas slipped to 10-6-2.
Arttu Hyry and David Perron were among the Stars goal scorers, but Winnipeg kept piling on behind contributions from Gabriel Vilardi, Kyle Connor and Cole Koepke. The result was a lopsided finish that turned what had been a competitive game into a reminder of how quickly a conference opponent can seize control when the momentum swings the wrong way. [Read more 🡒]
Stars Suddenly Have Another Blue-Line Problem To Worry About
Dallas blue line took another hit when Nils Bichsel exited the game against the Winnipeg Jets with a lower-body injury, leaving the Stars to sort through an already thin defensive picture. Head coach Glen Gulutzan said the team is still evaluating the injury, but the early expectation is that Bichsel will miss at least the next two games.
For a club trying to keep its back end intact, the timing is less than ideal, and it may force Dallas to reach into its AHL affiliates for help. Bichsels return remains uncertain for now, which means the Stars have a roster issue to manage on top of whatever comes next on the schedule. [Read more 🡒]
Stars Blue Line Suddenly Looks Even Thinner For Tough Weekend
The Stars are heading into a difficult weekend with their blue line already stretched thin, and Thursdays game against Winnipeg made the situation worse. Lian Bichsel will be out for the upcoming weekend games after suffering a lower-body injury in that matchup, adding another absence to a group that was already dealing with multiple injuries.
Miro Heiskanen is still sidelined with an upper-body injury and has been skating on his own, but he has not yet returned to practice with the team. Dallas is also without Matt Duchene, Kyle Capobianco and Oskar Bck, leaving the Stars to navigate a tough stretch with several key pieces unavailable. [Read more 🡒]