Game Recap

BUFFALO 2, DALLAS 2 (OT) BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) - It was eerily familiar, right down to Brett Hull sitting in the same locker describing how he scored a big goal against the Buffalo Sabres. The only difference was this wasn't triple overtime, and the Stanley Cup wasn't on the line. In his first visit back to Buffalo since scoring the disputed Cup-clinching goal some 17 months earlier, Hull scored with 4:58 left in regulation to secure the Dallas Stars a 2-2 tie with the Sabres on Wednesday night. "Yeah, (the goal's) not quite as big but, good for us right now because we've been having a little trouble lately," Hull said. "It was a great game." After Sabres goalie Dominik Hasek stopped Jere Lehtinen's shot from the right circle, the rebound went directly to Hull who, standing to the left of the net, flipped it in off Hasek's pad. "I just felt where the puck was, that the best spot for me was off that post and it came right to me," Hull said. Curiously, the same Stars -- Hull and Lehtinen -- were aligned just as they were in the decisive Game 6 of the 1999 finals. Lehtinen took the initial shot, which was stopped by Hasek. Hull pounced on the rebound and eventually scored. While replays clearly showed that Hull's left skate was in the crease -- against the rules at the time -- NHL officials allowed the goal to stand, ruling that he never lost possession of the puck. The Sabres, who beat the Stars 3-1 last season in Dallas, could only shake their heads. "It was deja-vu, I guess," Sabres coach Lindy Ruff said. Hasek was still kicking himself for losing his goal stick leading to Hull's goal. "I made a mistake," Hasek said. "After I lost my stick, I couldn't make the save I wanted to make. I gave the puck exactly on Brett Hull's stick, and he was wide open." Hasek appeared to have the battle won as he foiled Hull on three golden scoring opportunities earlier in the game. "I don't know if I've played in a better game this year," said Hull, who extended his points streak to five games. "Lots of emotion in the crowd. I think you've got two teams with 20 guys still left from 20 years ago trying to prove something." Chris Gratton and Curtis Brown scored for the Sabres, who have yet to lose at home this season (7-0-2), their best home start in 11 years. Mike Keane scored for the Stars, playing on consecutive nights following Tuesday's 3-2 loss at Columbus. BUFFALO SABRES 2, Dallas Stars 2 (OT) 1ST 2ND 3RD OT FINAL --- --- --- --- ----- Dallas 1 0 1 0 2 Buffalo 1 0 1 0 2 FIRST PERIOD - SCORING: 1, Buffalo, Brown 3 (Warrener, Gratton), 8:10 (pp). 2, Dallas, Keane 4 (Donato, Muller), 12:49. PENALTIES: Helenius, Dal (hooking), 2:00; Hatcher, Dal (cross-checking), 3:59; Dallas bench, served by Morrow (too many men), 6:12; Brown, Buf (cross-checking), 9:54; Helenius, Dal (roughing), 16:53; Boulton, Buf, double minor (cross-checking, roughing), 16:53. SECOND PERIOD - SCORING: None. PENALTIES: Hatcher, Dal (cross-checking), :30; Bouck, Dal, major (fighting), 8:39; Hamel, Buf, major (fighting), 8:39; Satan, Buf, triple minor (slashing, double high-sticking), 9:21. THIRD PERIOD - SCORING: 3, Buffalo, Gratton 5 (Gilmour, Afinogenov), 14:16. 4, Dallas, Hull 11 (Lehtinen, Zubov), 15:02. PENALTIES: Varada, Buf (slashing), 2:18; Bouck, Dal (roughing), 10:53; Kalinin, Buf (roughing), 10:53. OVERTIME - SCORING: None. PENALTIES: None. SHOTS ON GOAL 1ST 2ND 3RD OT TOTAL --- --- --- --- ----- Dallas 7 9 9 1 26 Buffalo 8 3 6 4 21 POWER PLAY Dallas 0 of 6; Buffalo 1 of 4. GOALIES: Dallas, Belfour 7-5-3 (21 shots-19 saves). Buffalo, Hasek 7-5-2 (26-24). Referees: Blaine Angus, Lance Roberts. Linesmen: Ray Scapinello, Lyle Seitz. A: 17,106 (18,690).