Game Recap

DALLAS 4, LOS ANGELES 3 DALLAS (AP) - Brett Hull didn't get to celebrate his sixth goal of the season right away on Saturday night. He had to wait a minute or so while the replay process confirmed the 616th goal of his career. Hull scored the game-winner on a deflection with 5:46 to play as the Dallas Stars rallied for a 4-3 victory over the Los Angeles Kings. With the Stars on a power play in a 3-3 game, Hull set up in the slot with his stick raised high and deflected Sergei Zubov's point shot down to the ice and past goalie Jamie Storr. The play went to replay, and the video goal judges ruled that the puck struck Hull's stick when it was below the level of the crossbar, giving the Stars their fifth straight victory. "Hatch (team captain Derian Hatcher) told me they thought it was good, but they had to make sure," Hull said. "I didn't think there was any question. I thought when I hit it my stick was at chest level." Storr did not dispute the call, saying, "They reviewed it so obviously they had a question. I wasn't sure. I know he deflected it and made a great tip. That's why he has a lot of goals. They called it a goal so it was a goal." Hull remains in eighth place on the career goal-scoring list, 11 behind Detroit's Steve Yzerman. Mike Modano's second-period goal got the Stars even at 3. Zubov had a goal and two assists for the Stars, who remain unbeaten at home this season (4-0-1). Nelson Emerson's second-period goal gave the Kings a 3-2 advantage, after first-period goals from Steven Reinprecht and Ziggy Palffy sent Los Angeles to a 2-0 lead. The two goals in the game's opening 5:08 came off odd-man rushes as the Stars -- playing their third game in four nights -- had trouble coping with the Kings' team speed. "We found it hard to catch up to the pace of the game at the start," Stars coach Ken Hitchcock said. "To go down two goals quick and then catch up, that was a great effort. If you fall behind their tempo, you're going to struggle against that team." Reinprecht converted a 3-on-1 at 2:34, then Palffy added his seventh off a 2-on-1 2:34 later. But two Kings penalties gave the Stars a two-man advantage, and Dallas struck for two power-play goals over a 1:23 span to tie it at 2. Hull's one-timer from the top of the left circle at 8:09 was his fifth goal of the season, and Zubov got the tying goal on a shot from the point. The Kings took a 3-2 lead at 8:36 of the second period on Emerson's backhander from in front of the net, but Modano cruised up the slot and converted a centering pass at 15:28 to tie it at 3. DALLAS STARS 4, Los Angeles Kings 3 1ST 2ND 3RD FINAL --- --- --- ----- Los Angeles 2 1 0 3 Dallas 2 1 1 4 FIRST PERIOD - SCORING: 1, Los Angeles, Reinprecht 3 (Murray, Schneider), 2:34. 2, Los Angeles, Palffy 7 (Vlasak, Visnovsky), 5:08. 3, Dallas, Hull 5 (Zubov, Modano), 8:09 (pp). 4, Dallas, Zubov 2 (Lyashenko, Langenbrunner), 9:32 (pp). PENALTIES: Schneider, LA (hooking), 7:13; Karalahti, LA (boarding), 7:38; Langenbrunner, Dal (high-sticking), 14:31; Donato, Dal (slashing), 19:45. SECOND PERIOD - SCORING: 5, Los Angeles, Emerson 2 (Smolinski, Johnson), 8:36. 6, Dallas, Modano 3 (Langenbrunner), 15:28. PENALTIES: Robitaille, LA (hooking), 1:44; Lehtinen, Dal (slashing), 4:45; Schenider, LA (high-sticking), 11:18; Buchberger, LA (elbowing), 17:24; Hatcher, Dal (roughing), 17:24. THIRD PERIOD - SCORING: 7, Dallas, Hull 6 (Zubov), 14:14 (pp). PENALTIES: Donato, Dal (slashing), 3:03; Norstrom, LA (hooking), 8:53; Reinprecht, LA (holding), 12:55. SHOTS ON GOAL 1ST 2ND 3RD TOTAL --- --- --- ----- Los Angeles 13 8 6 27 Dallas 11 13 13 37 POWER PLAY: Los Angeles 0 of 4; Dallas 3 of 6. Goalies: Los Angeles, Storr 2-2-1 (37 shots-33 saves). Dallas, Belfour 5-1-1 (27-24). Referees: Denis Larue, Mike Leggo. Linesmen: Pierre Racicot, Lonnie Cameron. A: 17,001 (17,001).