ST. LOUIS, Mo. (SportsNetwork.com) - Following Monday's medical emergency involving Dallas forward Rich Peverley, the Stars were in desperate need of an emotional lift.
Enter captain Jamie Benn.
Benn buried the game winner 3:42 into overtime, as the Dallas Stars secured a 3-2 victory over the St. Louis Blues on Tuesday at Scottrade Center.
Monday's matchup between Dallas and Columbus was less than seven minutes old before Peverley, who had a procedure performed during the preseason to correct an irregular heartbeat, collapsed shortly after completing a shift.
Players from both teams frantically called for medical personnel to assist the nine-year veteran, who was treated for a "cardiac event" before being transported to a local hospital.
The game was promptly postponed, with players from both teams, especially the Stars, visible shaken by the incident.
Dallas rebounded from the scary scene to collect their third straight win Tuesday, thanks to regulation markers from Colton Sceviour and Antoine Roussel along with a 28-save effort from Tim Thomas, who made his first start for the Stars since being acquired from Florida last Wednesday.
"I told them that you can look for a reason to lose or you can find a way to win," Dallas head coach Lindy Ruff said of getting his guys mentally ready less than 24 hours after Monday's incident. "I said we need to find a way to win and we need to win it for a couple of our teammates."
Alex Pietrangelo and Roman Polak each potted a goal for St. Louis, which set a franchise record with at least one point in its 20th consecutive division game, improving to 18-0-2 this season against other teams from the Central.
Ryan Miller made 27 saves in defeat, his first with his new club.
"Our execution could be a little better and mine as well," Miller admitted. "We were in the game tonight. It could have gone either way."
With Dallas on the attack late in the extra session, Trevor Daley carried the disc along the right midboards and made his way behind the net before sending a backhand feed through the slot to the right circle, where Benn ripped a wrister past Miller to send the Stars to victory.
Pietrangelo put the Blues on the board 13:01 into the tilt when he buried a rebound from in front following Magnus Paajarvi's wraparound try, but the Stars answered in the final minute of the frame after Kevin Shattenkirk went off for holding at 18:33.
Alex Goligoski fired a shot from the right point that Miller fought off, but Sceviour swatted the rebound through Miller's legs from in front to make it 1-1 with 52.6 seconds on the clock.
Following a scoreless second stanza, the Stars jumped on top 2:19 into the third after St. Louis forward David Backes fanned on a pass near the right point and Benn intercepted the disc before pushing it ahead to Roussel.
Roussel then raced past a defender before flipping a quick wrister from in front that Miller got most of, but not enough to keep the puck from trickling across the goal line to make it 2-1.
However, Polak answered with a heavy slapper from the high slot at 5:01 to retie the tilt.
