DeSmith stops 27 shots to lead Stars to 6th straight win, 4-1 over Flyers

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PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Casey DeSmith stopped 27 shots to lead the Dallas Stars to their sixth straight victory, 4-1 over the Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday night.

The Stars won for the seventh time in eight games as they continue their run up the Western Conference standings. Mavrik Bourque and Roope Hintz scored in the first period. Wyatt Johnston made it 3-0 in the second.

Miro Heiskanen added an empty-netter in the third period to help the Stars win for the ninth time in their last 11 games in Philadelphia dating to March 27, 2018.

Morgan Frost scored the lone goal for the Flyers. The Flyers are stuck on 17 wins with only nine in regulation and were forced to hear “E-A-G-L-E-S! E-A-G-L-E-S!” chants from a thinned-out crowd in the waning moments of another loss.

Stars: DeSmith has been stout in limited action this season behind Jake Oettinger. He won his fourth straight start and hasn't allowed more than two goals if any of them. He stopped all six shots in a relief effort over that span.

Flyers: The Flyers returned from a six-game road trip where they won just twice. They've lost three straight overall and coach John Tortorella's team is headed toward another season without the playoffs.

Bourque needed only 1:45 into the game to beat Sam Ersson for a 1-0 lead and suck the enthusiasm out of the fans. Ersson hadn't played since he left a Dec. 31 game after two periods with an unspecified injury. The Flyers entered the game allowing the third-most goals per game (3.54) in the NHL.

Flyers Charities donated $300,000 to Ed Snider Youth Hockey and Education on a night where the franchise honored their late owner.

Both teams play Saturday night. The Stars are at Montreal, and the Flyers host Anaheim.

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