Columbus Blue Jackets at Dallas Stars

Duchene, Johnston and Dadonov score in 3rd as Stars beat Blue Jackets 5-3

Thomas Harley and Roope Hintz also scored, and Jamie Benn and Jason Robertson each had two assists for Dallas, which improved to 5-1-1 this season. Jake Oettinger stopped 22 shots to improve to 8-0-1 in his career against Columbus.

Dmitri Voronkov, Damon Severson and Sean Kuraly scored for the Blue Jackets, who have lost four straight games (0-2-2). Elvis Merzlikins finished with 28 saves.

The 32-year-old Duchene, who signed with the Stars in the offseason after his contract was bought out by Nashville, shot into the vacant right side of the net at 2:49 of the third for a 3-2 lead after Merzlikins stopped Ryan Suter’s slap shot from the opposite side. It was Duchene’s first goal with Dallas.

“The first one’s always the hardest one to get during the season,” Duchene said. “Was probably the luckiest and least dangerous play of the game that ended up in the net tonight.”

Minutes after Duchene’s goal, Oettinger made a sprawling glove save to rob Boone Jenner.

“I felt like I let in a soft goal, so I feel like I owed the team a big stop,” Oettinger said.

Dadonov made it 4-2 with 7:21 remaining and Johnston added an empty-netter with 3:39 to play.

Kuraly got the Blue Jackets within two 49 seconds later.

“We’re going to have to find a way to close out third periods,” Columbus’ Mathieu Olivier said. “I thought we gave them a push, but that’s a veteran, hard-working team out there. And they gave it a little bit more.”

The Stars went into play emphasizing a fast start after being held to two goals in their first six games. They scored 27 seconds in, then allowed two goals in the period.

Harley flicked in the first goal following a cross-slot saucer pass from Robertson on a 2-on-1 break. Harley, a defenseman, has two goals in the last three games after scoring once in 49 previous NHL games.

A little more than four minutes later, rookie Voronkov scored his first NHL goal from the low slot to tie the score as the puck caromed off Dallas’ Joe Pavelski and trickled through Oettinger.

With the teams playing 4-on-4, Severson slapped a one-timer from the left circle beneath Oettinger’s left elbow to give the Jackets a 2-1 lead with 6:19 left in the opening period. Dallas has allowed 4-on-4 goals in consecutive games.

Hintz tied the score at 2-all with a redirection off his body off Robertson’s shot just outside the crease at 5:52 of the second period.

It appeared Dallas took a 3-2 lead midway through the period on a goal by Mason Marchment, but the play was ruled offside following the Blue Jackets’ challenge. It was the fourth goal wiped out by Columbus challenges this season and the second time Marchment had a goal reversed.

UP NEXT

Blue Jackets: Host Tampa Bay on Thursday night.

Stars: At Calgary on Wednesday night to begin a three-game trip to Western Canada.

DAL leads series 1-0