Stars Move into First Place with Sweep of IceHogs

Feb 8, 2025

CEDAR PARK, Texas – The Texas Stars, American Hockey League affiliate of the NHL’s Dallas Stars, secured the season series against the Rockford IceHogs with a 4-3 win on Saturday at the H-E-B Center at Cedar Park. Despite the IceHogs' three first-period goals, the Stars came out on top with their fifth consecutive victory over Rockford this season.

The Stars also moved into first place in the Central Division standings, leapfrogging Grand Rapids, thanks to the weekend sweep.

An eventful first period was kicked off by Samuel Savoie of the IceHogs, who scored the first goal of the game. Savoie slapped at a bouncing puck from the left dot that beat goaltender Ben Kraws 6:08 into the contest. Texas answered with their first goal, when Antonio Stranges was found streaking down the slot and Gavin White found him with a backdoor pass.

Rockford quickly regained the lead just over a minute later when Joey Anderson a backhand shot that beat Kraws over the shoulder. The IceHogs extended their advantage after capitalizing on a defensive zone turnover by the Stars, eventually finding Andreas Athanasiou for a tap-in on a wide-open net. Texas responded with 3:22 remaining in the period when a point shot from Kyle Capobianco redirected off Kole Lind at the net front, making it 3-2 as the first period came to a close.

Late in the second period, Commesso was replaced by Ben Gaudreau due to an apparent lower-body injury. Just three minutes later, Capobianco tied the game for Texas with a shot from the top of the left point. The shot, taken through a screen, beat Gaudreau on the glove side.

Matej Blümel netted the eventual game-winning goal shorthanded just past the midway point of the final frame to give the Stars their first lead. He streaked down the left side, moved to the middle, and blasted a shot past Gaudreau.

Kraws turned away 24 of 27 shots to earn his first win with the Stars this season. Commesso stopped 8 of 10 shots before being replaced by Gaudreau, who made 14 saves on 16 shots in the loss for the IceHogs.

The Stars now head to Winnipeg for two games against the Manitoba Moose at the Canada Life Centre. The first game is Wednesday, with puck drop scheduled for 7:00 p.m. Catch all the action on AHLTV on FloHockey.

The Texas Stars are the primary development affiliate of the NHL’s Dallas Stars. For more information, call (512) GO-STARS (467-8277) or visit TexasStars.com.

Photo Credit: Logan Foust

Game Info	Shots	Goaltenders	3 Stars (Ubeo Business Services)
Boxscore	TEX: 26	W: Kraws (TEX)	1: Capobianco (TEX)
Photo	RFD: 27	L: Gaudreau (RFD)	2: Blümel (TEX)
			3: Hryckowian (TEX)