Mikko Rantanen’s three-assist masterclass powered the Dallas Stars to a 4–3 win over the Winnipeg Jets in Winnipeg, extending Dallas’ points streak to 11 games and underscoring the gap between a surging contender and a rattled .500 team.
Stars blitz early and never trail
The night could hardly have started better for Dallas. With just 44 seconds gone, Esa Lindell stepped into a point shot through traffic and beat Eric Comrie to make it 1–0. The early strike silenced the crowd and immediately put Winnipeg on the back foot, a theme that carried through much of the opening period.
According to the official NHL.com recap, Dallas has now opened the scoring in seven of its last eight games during this blistering run, and the confidence showed. The Stars dictated pace, kept shifts short, and forced the Jets into hurried clears and icings.
Rantanen orchestrates a second-period surge
The real damage arrived early in the second. Starting the period on a power play, the Stars sliced Winnipeg apart with a quick, low passing sequence. Wyatt Johnston threaded a pass into the slot, Rantanen slipped it across, and Roope Hintz finished from tight in at 1:16 to double the lead.
Just 75 seconds later, Dallas struck again. Off a clean offensive-zone win, the puck worked its way to Alex Petrovic at the top of the right circle. His one-timer tore through a screen and past Comrie for 3–0, earning Rantanen another helper and leaving the Jets visibly stunned.
As Canadian Press reporting via Sportsnet noted, Rantanen now has 14 points (three goals, 11 assists) over a seven-game point streak and has quickly become the creative heartbeat of Dallas’ top unit.
Scheifele drags Jets back into it
For all of Dallas’ control, Winnipeg refused to fold. Midway through the second, a rare miscue from Stars defenceman Nils Lundkvist opened the door. His attempted clearance was picked off by Kyle Connor, who slid the puck across to Mark Scheifele in the left circle. The Jets centre ripped a snap shot past Casey DeSmith at 11:04 to make it 3–1 and breathe life into the building.
The same trio combined again late in the frame. Six seconds after a Jets power play expired, Connor found Scheifele in almost the identical spot, and the Winnipeg captain hammered a one-timer home from one knee at 18:52. In the space of eight minutes, a 3–0 cruise had become a precarious 3–2 lead.
Scheifele’s brace pushed him to 16 goals on the year, nudging him past Connor for the team lead, while the Jets continue to lean heavily on their top line for offence during what has otherwise been a difficult stretch (they are now 2–7–1 in their last 10, per Canadian Press).
Robertson restores control, but Jets keep coming
If the second period belonged to Scheifele, the third belonged to Jason Robertson. Early in the final frame, Dallas earned another power play and went to work. Rantanen held the puck on the half-wall, waited for the lane to open, and slid a cross-seam pass for Robertson’s trademark one-timer. The winger buried his team-leading 19th goal at 4:46 for a 4–2 cushion.
Dallas’ power play, which already led the league in goals heading into the night, finished 2-for-4 and continues to be a key weapon in this unbeaten run. Reuters’ game report highlighted that the Stars have now scored multiple power-play goals in three of their last five contests, turning special teams into a nightly edge.
The Jets, though, still had one last push. Defenceman Logan Stanley joined the rush, drove the crease, and jammed in his own rebound at 5:54 to cut the deficit back to one at 4–3. From there Winnipeg poured on pressure, with Gabriel Vilardi and Cole Perfetti both forcing sharp saves from DeSmith in the final minutes.
DeSmith slams the door, Stars’ streaks stay alive
While Rantanen and the forwards will grab the headlines, Casey DeSmith quietly delivered another composed performance. The veteran backup finished with 30 saves and improved to 7-1-3 on the season, continuing a run that has allowed Dallas to rest Jake Oettinger without losing momentum.
DeSmith’s biggest moment came late in the third when the Jets earned a power play with 2:30 remaining. Winnipeg, 0-for-4 with the man advantage on the night, moved the puck crisply but couldn’t solve the Stars’ penalty kill, which has not allowed a power-play goal in nine straight games. A pair of pad saves on Vilardi in tight effectively sealed it.
With the victory, Dallas moved to 21-5-5, riding an 11-game point streak (9-0-2) and extending a franchise-record road run with points in 13 consecutive away games. Winnipeg, now 14-14-1, has dropped four of its last five and is searching for answers as the pressure builds on a fan base that expected a step forward this season.
What it means for both teams
For the Stars, this felt like another statement win. They built a three-goal cushion on the road, survived a serious wobble, and relied on their stars to close it out. Rantanen’s chemistry with Johnston and Hintz is growing by the game, while Robertson remains one of the NHL’s most consistent finishers.
The Jets, meanwhile, can point to character in the comeback but will be frustrated by another slow start and more special-teams problems. They have now conceded at least one power-play goal in six straight games and continue to give opponents early momentum with avoidable penalties and sloppy exits.
Dallas now heads to St. Paul to face the Minnesota Wild on Thursday, while Winnipeg stays home to host the Boston Bruins in what already feels like a measuring-stick response game.
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Key stats & sources
Game details and statistics referenced from NHL.com’s official recap, Canadian Press coverage via Sportsnet, and the Reuters game report.
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