• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers

Chimera's shootout goal help Blue Jackets top Stars

Mar 3, 2007 - 6:45 AM DALLAS (Ticker) -- Jason Chimera did what it took to send the Dallas Stars to another painful defeat.

After watching his team waste a two-goal lead, Chimera scored the lone goal of the shootout to lead the Columbus Blue Jackets to a 3-2 victory over the Stars.

One day after suffering a 2-1 overtime loss to the Panthers, Dallas fell behind Friday as former Star Manny Malhotra and Sergei Fedorov opened a 2-0 lead for Columbus. But it Dallas battled back to forge a tie on goals 97 seconds apart midway through the second period.

Defenseman Darryl Sydor got the Stars on the board during a power play eight minutes into the session, blasting a slap shot from the right point past goaltender Fredrik Norrena. Less than two minutse later, the veteran blue-liner helped set up Mike Modano's tally, which knotted the contest at 2-2.

"(Jussi Jokinen) was able to get (the puck) through a lot of bodies, a lot of sticks. I was able to get a stick on it," Modano said. "Jussi's got good patience, good poise with the puck. He makes some good plays just trying to go to the net and see if something happens."

"We had a little carryover from Florida with four straight periods of lackluster play," Sydor said. "We have to take control and get it done from the get-go. In the second period, we started getting the momentum back, and we got two quick goals and we were playing physical. We were getting through the neutral zone cleanly, limiting our neutral-zone turnovers, and the D were getting involved. But we started slow."

With neither team able to surge ahead over the final 35 minutes, the game went to a shootout. After Stars defenseman Sergei Zubov was denied by Norrena, Chimera deked Turco before scoring on a backhander, giving the Blue Jackets a 1-0 edge.

"We were joking before the game that we better not get into a shootout," Chimera said. "That was exciting. It's fun to be a part of that."

Modano and Jokinen failed to get the equalizer for Dallas, with the Finn sliding the puck wide on his patented one-handed attempt in the third round.

"It was pretty close," Norrena said of Jokinen's failed attempt. "I don't know if it touched his stick or he just missed it. He's really good at the move."

Modano also was unable to get the puck on net, partially fanning on his shot, which fluttered wide.

"Just a bad break," Modano said. "I'm a fan of watching it more than going. I knew exactly what I wanted to do, but it didn't turn out that way."

Chimera had an assist in regulation for Columbus, which won for just the second time in seven games overall and second in the last 12 meetings with Dallas.

"We seem to play well against the good teams," Chimera said. "This was nice to see. Our whole team played well."

Turco made 22 saves for the Stars, who have earned at least one point in seven straight contests (4-0-3).

"It was a disappointing effort early, and that isn't typical of us," Turco said. "We usually battle for everything, and stretches of uninspired hockey hurt us. We were a lot more emotionally engaged and physical later, and that needs to be the norm. That is our identity, and we need to bring that every night."

Malhotra opened the scoring at 11:34 of the first period, when he one-timed a shot past Turco. Fedorov gave Columbus a two-goal cushion at 5:21 of the middle session, burying a rebound in the low slot.