DALLAS, April 10 (UPI) -- Jim Dowd and Andrew Brunette scored 21 seconds apart Wednesday night as the Minnesota Wild rallied from a three-goal deficit for a 4-4 tie that pushed the Dallas Stars to the brink of elimination from postseason contention.
On Saturday, the University of Minnesota captured its first NCAA hockey championship in 23 years. Four nights later, the Wild nearly eliminated the team that left Minnesota following the 1992-93 season.
The tie left the Stars three points behind Vancouver for the final Western Conference playoff spot with just two games remaining. Dallas will be knocked out of the postseason for just the second time since moving to Texas if Vancouver defeats or ties Los Angeles on Thursday.
The Stars scored three times in a three-minute span of the second period for a seemingly safe 4-1 lead.
But Antti Laaksonsen started Minnesota's comeback with 6:40 to go in the period and Down and Brunette struck quickly in the third to tie it.
