The Phoenix Coyotes continued their hot streak by closing out their six-game road trip with another win, as they downed the Dallas Stars, 5-2, on Tuesday night at American Airlines Center.  Phoenix has won seven in a row.  Dallas was a step slow for much of the game and Phoenix played a solid 60 minutes to earn the win.  "It was a pretty long road trip for the guys and I wasn't one of them that got in at five in the morning," said Eric Lindros.  "For whatever reason, we weren't emotionally engaged in the game and if you do that, you are going to be behind," said Stars Head Coach Dave Tippett.  

A better third period couldn't make up for a lifeless first and second.  The only energy the Stars showed came in the first 15 minutes of the third period.  Some games, the Stars can get away with a sluggish period or two and come out with points.  Tuesday wasn't one of those games.

Lindros returned to the lineup after missing the last seven games due to injury.  He made a great play 10 minutes into the game that led to the first goal.  Lindros gathered the puck to the right of the goal and was engaged by Phoenix defenseman Zbynek Michalek. Lindros was pushed down to the ice and from his knees, sent the puck through the crease between two Phoenix players where Niklas Hagman finished the play.

Phoenix's Travis Roche tied the game at 1-1 a few minutes after Hagman's goal with his third tally of the year.  The score would stay that way until the middle of the second period.

Power play goals by Ed Jovanovski and Shane Doan in the second gave Phoenix a 3-1 lead after two periods.  Dallas' penalty-kill units couldn't keep up with Phoenix's power play, which slipped into passing lanes and found space in the slot.

Dallas received a 5-on-3 power play for 1:40 in the final minute of the period that extended into the third period, but the Stars had to wait until after the second intermission to cash it in.

The Stars came out with more passion in the third.  Nearing the end of a 5-on-3 advantage, Jere Lehtinen bulldozed his way to the net, secured a rebound off a Philippe Boucher shot on the left side of the net and squeezed the puck under Coyotes net-minder Mikael Tellqvist just inside the post.  The goal cut the Phoenix lead to 3-2 with 14 seconds left on the two-man advantage 42 seconds into the third period.  It was Dallas' 12th two-man advantage goal of the season.

Owen Nolan re-installed the Phoenix two-goal lead with 4:18 remaining in regulation and the Stars would get no closer.  Doan added an empty net goal in the last minute for the final margin.

"When your energy level isn't as high as it should be, you have to find ways to win," said Boucher. "You have to keep it simple. Going toward to all-star break, we have to put a good stretch together because some of those teams will be chasing us hard."

Stars goalie Marty Turco didn't appear to be on top of his game.  Turco allowed several big rebounds in front of the net, and his depleted defense couldn't contain the Coyotes forwards.

Stars center Mike Modano missed his 17th straight game with a hip/groin injury.  Modano will be out until at least after the All-Star break, Tippett said Monday.  Also out for Dallas are  Brendan Morrow (wrist) Steve Ott (ankle) and Mike Smith (slight concussion).  Star Darryl Sydor missed the final two periods with what the team termed a "upper body injury."

Dallas dropped to 12-4-0 against the Pacific Division this season, and 4-1-0 vs. the Coyotes.  The Stars snapped a five-game winning streak vs. Phoenix, a streak that dated back to last season.  The Stars are the only team in the league to have defensemen as their top-two scorers in defenseman Philippe Boucher and Sergei Zubov.  That isn't a good sign. 

Phoenix's seven-game winning streak is the longest for the team since 1999.  Three weeks ago, the Coyotes were sitting eight games under .500 and going nowhere in the Western Conference standings.  Now they're the league's hottest team.  Coyotes coach Wayne Gretzky said that while stringing together wins is nice, his team has just reached the break-even point (20-20-2) for the first time since Phoenix was 1-1 on Oct. 7. There's plenty of work ahead if the Coyotes hope to challenge the Western Conference heavyweights.

Mikael Tellqvist stopped 29 shots, including all 16 he faced in the second period, to help the Coyotes wrap up a perfect five-game road trip.  "We're going to try to ride this wave as long as possible," Tellqvist said.  "Nobody thought we'd be in the playoff race a couple of weeks ago."

"I would have bet the whole world we wouldn't have swept all five games," Coyotes center Jeremy Roenick said.  "It's totally out of the realm of amazement."  The Coyotes have won their last six on the road.

"Our power play has given us a chance, and our goaltenders have taken the pressure off with some big saves," Doan said.  "The thing is, we needed this streak to get to .500.  That's how deep we were buried."

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