COLUMBUS, Ohio, March 11 (UPI) -- Ron Tugnutt, acquired from the Columbus Blue Jackets last March, victimized his former team Tuesday night with his second straight shutout as the Dallas Stars skated to a 2-0 victory.
Dallas shored up its offense and defense before Tuesday's trade deadline, acquiring center Stu Barnes and defenseman Lyle Odelein in seperate deals. The Stars hope both will help the team as much as Tugnutt, who has recorded four shutouts this season and improved to 14-7-5 as the backup to All-Star Marty Turco.
Tugnutt's stint as starter may be winding down, with Turco recovering from an ankle injury. But his play has kept the Western Conference-leading Stars in the thick of the Presidents' Trophy race. Dallas, which has won four of its last five games, remained one point behind Ottawa for the NHL's best record.
Ulf Dahlen and rookie Steve Ott scored for Dallas.
Dahlen put in a rebound of Jason Arnott's shot with 10:40 left in the first period. It was the 14th goal of the season and 298th of Dahlen's career.
Ott came in alone on Marc Denis after taking a pass from Kirk Muller and slipped a backhander under the goaltender's pads with 13:26 left in the second period.
The Blue Jackets fell to 2-9-1-1 in their last 13 games.
