Dadonov and Benn score as Stars beat Utah 2-1 for 3rd straight win

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Evgeni Dadonov and Jamie Benn each scored to help the Dallas Stars beat the Utah Hockey Club 2-1 on Monday night for their third straight win.

Casey DeSmith stopped 34 shots for Dallas, which has won eight of its last 11 games.

Nick Schmaltz scored and Karel Vejmelka finished with 19 saves for Utah, which fell to 3-2-1 in its last six.

Dadonov scored on the power play at 7:07 of the second period and Benn made it 2-0 in the final minute of the period.

Schmaltz got Utah on the scoreboard at 6:57 of the third.

Utah defenseman Mikhail Sergachev played his 500th career game on Monday.

Utah Hockey Club: Utah continues it’s up-and-down play, not having won consecutive games since winning its first three to start the season.

Stars: The win brought Dallas to 32 points, strengthening its hold on third place in the Central Division and moving four points behind Minnesota and Winnipeg atop the division.

Early in the first period, with a loose puck floating toward him, DeSmith flicked it away with his shoulder pad. That play set the tone for his evening.

Utah is now just 2-8-1 when allowing the first goal this season, while Dallas is now 12-2-0 when scoring first.

Stars visit Los Angeles on Wednesday, while Utah visits Buffalo on Saturday.

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AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl