Blue Jackets 3 - 1 Stars
Final
  for this game

Blue Jackets stay alive with big win over Stars

Apr 26, 2013 - 5:40 AM Dallas, TX (Sports Network) - Cam Atkinson scored two goals, Sergei Bobrovsky made 31 saves and the Columbus Blue Jackets kept their postseason hopes alive by wrapping up a six-game road trip with Thursday's 3-1 victory over the Dallas Stars.

Mark Letestu also tallied for the Blue Jackets, who notched their seventh win in eight games and moved into a tie with idle Minnesota for the final playoff spot in the Western Conference. Each club has 53 points, but the Wild have two games remaining to Columbus' one.

Detroit sits seventh with 54 points and has one game left on its schedule.

"It feels great," Atkinson said of being in the playoff race. "You can only control what you can control and that's what we're doing."

Kari Lehtonen stopped 32 shots for Dallas, which was eliminated from playoff contention with Detroit's win over Nashville on Thursday.

"To be honest, we knew after the 2nd period," Dallas coach Glen Gulutzan said of his team being eliminated from playoff contention. "I think most of our players did, too. However, at the moment, the loss stings."

Letestu broke a 1-1 tie on a power play at the 7:56 mark of the third period. Brandon Dubinsky won a faceoff back to Letestu, playing on the point, and he fired a shot that deflected in off a penalty killer.

Atkinson sealed the win with another power-play marker. He pounced on a loose puck to Lehtonen's right and put it into an open net with 1:40 remaining.

The Blue Jackets jumped out to a 1-0 lead 19 seconds after the game's opening faceoff. Lehtonen turned away bids from Dubinsky and Blake Comeau, but he was unable to deny Atkinson from close range.

Dallas drew even on Jamie Benn's power-play goal at 8:43 of the second period.

Game Notes

The Stars will miss the playoffs for the fifth consecutive season ... Dallas forward Loui Eriksson played in his 500th career game ... The Blue Jackets and Stars both wrap up their seasons at home on Saturday. Columbus will battle Nashville, while Dallas will face Detroit ... The Blue Jackets concluded the road portion of their schedule with a 10-12-2 record.






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