Heiskanen's Overtime Pass Sends Hintz Away as Stars Beat Jets 3-2

Miro Heiskanen did not score Thursday night, but his pass decided the game. After Jason Robertson blocked a Winnipeg scoring chance in overtime, Heiskanen sent Roope Hintz in alone, and Hintz finished the breakaway at 3:47 of the extra period. The goal gave Dallas a 3-2 win at American Airlines Center.

The play turned a defensive stop into an attack almost immediately. A recovery does little good if the next touch hands the opponent another chance, and Heiskanen's outlet changed the purpose of the possession. Hintz then supplied the finish.

Robertson's part was essential. Heika reported that a Robertson turnover created the Winnipeg chance in the first place, before his block ended it. The sequence was a shared recovery, not something Heiskanen built on his own.

The pass came at the end of a long night. With Esa Lindell scratched, Heiskanen played 29:20 and Thomas Harley logged 28:27. The next Dallas defender was Lian Bichsel at 17:47, while Nils Lundkvist, Tyler Myers and Kyle Capobianco also played. The totals do not show every matchup or point to a permanent pairing, but they show how much Dallas leaned on its top two defensemen.

Dallas was not flawless. Johnston opened the scoring early in the second period, but Gabriel Vilardi and Kyle Connor answered later in the period to put Winnipeg ahead. The Stars stayed behind until Hintz scored a six-on-five equalizer with two minutes left in regulation.

The shot count suggested Dallas should not have needed that rescue. The Stars outshot Winnipeg 38-19, but Skinner made 35 saves and forced them to work for every goal. The defense could limit Winnipeg's chances but could not make every Dallas attempt go in at the other end.

Heiskanen finished with five shots, one block and the winning assist, so his night went beyond the final pass. Harley also went without a goal. Neither defenseman needed to score for their minutes to matter in a game Dallas won with a single finish.

The question now is how Dallas spreads that workload. Lindell's absence was a Thursday fact, and the game did not establish a return date or a revised rotation. It is too early to call the arrangement a lasting solution or a source of fatigue. For one night, the Stars completed the assignment in front of them.