Johan Holmqvist couldn't have imagined a worse start with his new team.

The goalie acquired from Tampa Bay on Feb. 26 in the Brad Richards trade had been waiting patiently for his chance to play. On Saturday, he started, allowed three goals on 12 shots and was pulled after the first period in a 4-3 loss to the Vancouver Canucks.

He allowed his first goal on the second shot of the game at the 2:32 mark.

"I don't know what to say, it was a bad goal," Holmqvist said. "It felt very bad."

Holmqvist didn't get much help as the Dallas Stars' defense allowed several scoring chances, including a two-on-none and a couple of point blank shots that Holmqvist stopped.

"I feel bad for him, we didn't give him much of a chance," Stars coach Dave Tippett said. "You can't make the kind of mistakes we're making and expect to win."

Holmqvist said he will simply go back to practice and start working hard again, but Tippett said one of the reasons he played Holmqvist was because the schedule doesn't allow for too many opportunities going forward. Dallas has back-to-back games on March 22-23 and also on April 3-4, but they may go into the playoffs with Holmqvist having very little experience on the ice.

"It's just like before, I will work hard in practice, I will work hard to be with the team," Holmqvist said. "That's all I can do."

Kesler responds: Vancouver center Ryan Kesler said he felt the eight-game suspension the league issued to Anaheim's Chris Pronger was deserved. Pronger stepped on Kesler's leg while the two were tangled up in Wednesday's game. Pronger will miss eight of the final nine games and then return for the playoffs.

"That's deserved," Kesler said. "The league usually does a good job with the amount of games, and he probably knows what he did was wrong."

Asked where stepping on someone ranks in the pantheon of suspendable offenses, Kesler replied: "It's top of the list. A skate blade is the most dangerous part of the equipment. You shouldn't use it like that. I'm just fortunate."

Second period still hot: The Stars added to their second period goal-differential by outscoring the Canucks, 2-0 in the middle frame. Dallas has outscored opponents by 34 goals in the second period, tops in the NHL. However, Dallas now has been outscored 61-59 in first period and 75-74 in the third period.

Briefly: The Stars' home winning streak against the Canucks was stopped at seven games. It was the second longest active home winning streak against any opponent. Dallas has won eight straight at home against the Wild. ... Stephane Robidas had an assist on Mike Modano's power play goal, giving him points in the last four games. That ties his career-long scoring streak, set with Chicago in 2004. ... The attendance for Saturday was 18,584, the Stars' 16th sellout of the season. ... The Stars will not practice the next two days and will return to the practice ice at 11 a.m. Tuesday in Frisco.