While some competition between Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin exists on a friendly level, the only thing the NHL's top two scorers care about is helping the Dallas Stars pile up more victories.
The duo can build on another stellar combined performance when the Stars visit the Carolina Hurricanes on Friday night.
Seguin recorded his seventh career hat trick and Benn assisted on two of those goals as Dallas (10-3-0) continued its early success with Tuesday's 5-3 win at Boston. Entering play Thursday, Seguin and Benn shared the league lead with 20 points. Benn has 10 goals with Seguin close behind with eight.
"We know where we stand (individually), but I like our 10-3 record a lot better," Benn told the Stars' official website.
Benn couldn't have been happier with Tuesday's performance by Seguin, who has four goals and six assists during a six-game point streak.
"I'm probably just as happy as he is," Benn said. "But the bigger thing is that we got two points in a tough building, we responded well as a team, and now we can move on."
Thanks to both, Dallas leads the Western Conference in both goals per game (3.54) and power-play percentage (29.5). The Stars have yet to lose consecutive games and won five of the last six on the road.
"Even the games that we've lost, we've had a chance to win them or just made some mental mistakes that definitely could have not happened," Benn said. "But I like where we're sitting right now."
Seguin recorded five goals while scoring in four straight games against the Hurricanes (5-7-0) before being blanked in a 5-3 loss at Carolina on March 12. Benn had a goal with two assists while the Stars split last season's two meetings.
Carolina returns to action after its three-game winning streak ended with Sunday's 4-3 loss to Tampa Bay. The Hurricanes were glad for the opportunity to fine-tune some things during a break amid their four-game home stretch.
"We'll be able to set ourselves up for the month of November," said forward Kris Versteeg, who has recorded half of his team-leading 10 points in the last two contests.
Though the Hurricanes missed an opportunity to reach .500, general manager Ron Francis feels optimistic about the club's early effort while playing only four games at home.
"We're still in a good position here," he told the Hurricanes' official website. "The guys believe in the guys in the locker room. I sense that they all get along and believe that they can win. We have a chance here to rest up, regroup and get ready for the next stretch. Hopefully we take advantage of the games we have at home."
Francis should have plenty of belief in second-year center Victor Rask, who had three assists against the Lightning and has recorded all but one of his eight points in the last seven games.
Rask had two goals and two assists against the Stars last season.
