As it has been for most of the season, the Stars made it tougher than it needed to be Thursday night.
But in battling through a 4-2 win against the last-place Colorado Avalanche at American Airlines Center, Dallas won three games in a row for the first time, so the ends definitely justified the means.
Tyler Seguin finished with two goals and an assist, including an empty-net goal with 25.2 seconds left that allowed fans to finally breathe in a game that looked like it might go the other way at any moment. While the Stars finished with a 34-19 advantage in shots on goal and controlled much of the play, they frittered six power-play opportunities and didn't take advantage of a game that could have been a blowout early.