DALLAS, March 2 -- Brent Gilchrist scored twice and Mike Modano had a goal and an assist Saturday night to power the Dallas Stars to a 5-1 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs, extending their unbeaten streak to five games. Gilchrist scored in the second and third periods for the Stars, who moved to 4-0-1 in their last five games and climbed to within six points of Winnipeg for the final playoff spot in the Western Confernence. 'Right now a lot of guys are on the same page,' said Dallas coach Ken Hitchcock. 'Guys are willing to do the things that are necessary. That's why we've been successful lately.' Andy Moog made 27 saves and Grant Marshall set up three goals for Dallas, which improved to 4-14-3 this season against Central Division opponents. 'It would be a mistake for us to look at the standings every day,' said Moog, who stopped all 16 shots he faced in the first two periods. 'I know it's a cliche, but we should just look at one game at a time. If you look too far ahead you can get overwhelmed by the task at hand.' Toronto's Kirk Muller scored his ninth goal, a power-play marker with 3:13 left, that spoiled Moog's shutout bid. The Maple Leafs are 3-15-3 over their last 21 games and have not scored over three goals in any game over that span. Greg Adams opened the scoring with his 19th goal 12:50 into the first period to give the Stars a 1-0 lead.
Adams beat goaltender Felix Potvin with a wrist shot from the bottom of the left circle after receiving Marshall's pass from the right side. Gilchrist doubled the lead at the 11:09 mark of the second period with first goal of the game and 14th of the season. Benoit Hogue had the puck in the right corner and slid a pass to Gilchrist on the right side of the slot. Gilchrist wristed the puck along the ice and beat Potvin to the stick side. 'It feels great to get results for your hard work,' said Gilchrist, a forward who is regarded as a defensive specialist. 'This year we haven't been able to put people away and teams have given us trouble late in games. But lately our hard work is paying off with positive results.' Hogue has points in 10 straight games with assists in each of the last nine. He has three goals and 11 assists during his scoring streak, which began on Feb. 10. Modano, who has 12 goals and 17 assists for 29 points in his last 20 games, scored his 32nd goal of the season to make it 3-0 at 3:31 of the third period. Modano broke out of the penalty box to join Randy Wood on a rush and flipped the puck past Potvin's short side. 'He answered the bell after the penalty and that's what your leaders and good players do,' Hitchcock said. 'He's been playing very well and providing leadership for us in a quiet way.' Gilchrist scored his 15th goal of the season and second of the game to make it 4-0 with 7:34 remaining. Marshall dove and passed the puck in front of the net before Gilchrist one-timed it from the slot. Muller scored on the power play to break up the shutout and give the Maple Leafs their third man-advantage goal in their last 30 chances over six games. Marshall set up Richard Matvichuk's goal with 1:07 seconds left to complete the scoring for Dallas. Matvichuk finished with a goal and an assist. Potvin made 26 saves for Toronto. Recently-acquired wingers Wayne Presley and Nick Kypreos made their debuts for Toronto. They were acquired from the New York Rangers on Thursday for left wingers Sergio Momesso and Bill Berg. Dallas defenseman Craig Ludwig played the 1,000th game of his NHL career and was honored in a ceremony before the game. The team presented Ludwig with a watch, the league gave him a crystal piece and his teammates provided Ludwig with a vacation. 'It's nice to get it out of the way,' he said.
