Jamie Benn scored late in the second period to record his 1,000th NHL point, lifting the host Dallas Stars to a 2-0 victory over the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday.
Wyatt Johnston scored a power-play goal late in the third period and Jake Oettinger turned aside all 22 shots he faced to notch his fourth shutout of the season and the 20th of his career. His performance came two days after he yielded six goals on 27 shots before being pulled in Dallas’ 8-3 setback to the Winnipeg Jets.
The Stars denied all five of the Sabres’ power-play opportunities to improve to 9-3-1 in their last 13 games. Dallas also completed a season sweep of Buffalo after skating to a 4-0 victory in Buffalo on Oct. 8.
Alex Lyon made 28 saves for the Sabres, who have lost four in a row.
Dallas’ lopsided loss to Winnipeg on Thursday prompted a lengthy players-only meeting after the game. The Stars put the clamps on the Sabres defensively before Benn opened the scoring with 3:37 remaining in the second period.
Defenseman Nils Lundkvist’s shot from the point was deflected in front by Justin Hryckowian, causing a rebound that Benn converted at the left doorstep.
The entire team left the Dallas bench to celebrate on the ice with Benn, who joined Hall of Famer Mike Modano (1,359) as the lone players in franchise history to record 1,000 points in a Stars’ uniform. Benn, the longest-tenured captain in Stars history, was the 53rd player in NHL history to register 1,000 career points with a single franchise.
Benn’s goal was his fourth of the season and third in his last seven games.
Oettinger preserved the slim advantage by denying Noah Ostlund from point-blank range during a power play early in the third period.
The netminder didn’t stop there, extending his right pad to deny Zach Benson on the doorstep midway into the period.
Benson picked up an interference penalty with 1:21 remaining, damaging the Sabres’ chance at a tying goal.
Johnston iced the game by converting a centering feed to provide insurance with 42 seconds remaining.
