1. Antti Miettinen, Stars: Two goals, including a slap shot from distance with authority.

2. Brenden Morrow, Stars: Back to his grinding ways. He was great in winning puck battles and had two assists.

3. Mike Ribeiro, Stars: Flubbed a first-period penalty shot but bounced back with two assists.

First period: The Dallas Stars' power play struggled to create scoring chances, but Dallas was so good defensively, it was able to pull momentum out of the period. The Stars earned a penalty shot at the 11:44 mark, as Mike Ribeiro broke in alone with a long pass from Sergei Zubov and was dragged down. Ribeiro failed to get a shot off on the penalty shot, though, after flubbing a move from his backhand to his forehand. Marty Turco came up big on a short-handed breakaway.

Stars 0, Minnesota 0

Second period: Matt Niskanen opened the scoring when he picked up a deflected puck and whipped it past Wild goalie Niklas Backstrom at the 5:50 mark. It was Niskanen's second goal against the Wild this season. Turco was fortunate a few minutes later when he pushed the net off its moorings just seconds before Brent Burns scored for Minnesota. The goal was waved off. Minnesota tied it, however, on a Mark Parrish goal at the 9:19 mark. Dallas took the lead for good when Brenden Morrow made a drop pass and set a screen for Antti Miettinen, who scored on a slap shot from the top of the right circle.

Stars 2, Minnesota 1

Third period: Dallas couldn't score on a 5-on-3 that lasted almost two minutes at the end of the second period but came out in the third and earned an insurance goal. Ribeiro, Morrow and Miettinen again moved the puck well, and Miettinen scored from in close off a pass from Ribeiro at the 2:11 mark. It was Miettinen's second goal of the game and ninth of the season.

Stars 3, Minnesota 1