Stars open playoffs with 4-0 win over Wild
DALLAS (AP) Jamie Benn had a goal and two assists and the Dallas Stars beat the Minnesota Wild 4-0 in their first-round opener Thursday night.
Jason Spezza returned to the postseason with a nifty goal and added an assist and Kari Lehtonen stopped 22 shots for his second career playoff shutout.
Dallas, the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference, led 2-0 when Spezza was skating along the right side and initially faked a slap shot with just over 8 minutes left in the second period.
After skating a few more feet to near the center of the faceoff circle, he took a wrist shot and sent the puck in the upper right corner of the net.
Spezza was playing in his 57th playoff game, but first in two seasons with the Stars - and his first overall since 2013 with Ottawa.
Game 2 is Saturday night in Dallas.
