Tonight's game was not the one Texas needed. Needing to be perfect to make the postseason, the 4-1 loss to Stockton put the Stars two games below .500 and further sealed their fate as a non-playoff team this coming spring.
There wasn't any scoring in the first period as the smaller weekday crowd and the sluggish on-ice effort from both teams seemed to contribute to a sleepy atmosphere at the H-E-B Center.
"The second period we kind of picked it up, but those penalties killed us," said Matej Stransky, referring to the six power play opporunties that the Stars handed the Heat.