NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- The third period used to be an issue for the Stars. It was the period when Dallas dimmed, then faded to black, outshot and outscored consistently by opponents. They didn't claw back in the third period when they were behind, and they didn't separate in the third period when they were tied.
Early in the season, months before Thursday night's 3-2 overtime loss to Nashville, Stars coach Jim Montgomery even reached out to former coach Ken Hitchcock to discover the cause -- and possible solution -- to the Stars' third-period woes. Now, with the Stars six points up on a playoff spot in the Western Conference, those issues seem to have dissipated, if not completely disappeared.