1. Mikael Tellqvist, Phoenix: Goalie was phenomenal and lucky – a great combination for any netminder. He basically slammed the door on a motivated Stars team and handed momentum to his teammates.

2. Shane Doan, Phoenix: If he was playing on a good team in a major market, Doan would be considered on of the greatest players in the league. He does a lot of things right.

3. Daniel Carcillo, Phoenix: The gritty winger chipped in offensively and helped swing the game quickly to the Coyotes. He had a goal and an assist in the first period.

1st: Dallas came out with as much energy as it has this season and created several scoring chances in the first 12 minutes, but former Stars center Niko Kapanen flicked in a long rebound for Phoenix, and the air seemed to go out of the building. The Stars continued to push hard, but Phoenix made it 2-0 1:38 later on a Daniel Carcillo rebound goal. The Stars had simple defensive breakdowns on each play.

Phoenix 2, Stars 0

2nd: The Stars had 18 shots on goal in the period and 27 shot attempts, while Phoenix had four shots on goal and six shot attempts. However, goalie Mikael Tellqvist stood tal,l and the Coyotes were opportunistic, scoring the only goal of the period. Shane Doan beat Marty Turco on a breakaway after coming out of the penalty box.

Phoenix 3, Stars 0

3rd: Any chance of a comeback was squashed 26 seconds in when Martin Hanzal beat Turco from five feet away. The Stars then played an aggressive game, but continued to get turned away by the Tellqvist and the Coyotes. Phoenix ended the scoring on a short-handed goal by Radim Vrbata off a nice feed from Doan.

Phoenix 5, Stars 0