ST. PAUL, Minn. — For 92 minutes on Saturday night, the Minnesota Wild (1-2) kept circling.

The Dallas Stars (2-1) never cracked.

In a Game 3 that stretched through regulation and two overtimes, the Stars didn’t just win, they erased the most dangerous ice on the rink.

Not a single inner-slot shot allowed. Not one look from the area teams build entire offensive systems around.

That’s not a fluke. That’s structure. And it’s becoming the defining battle of this series against the Wild.

“They do a great job of getting inside and protecting their areas. And so we've had a challenge ourselves to get in there," Stars head coach Glen Gulutzan said. "With us, we've been good at it all year. You can just see our guys commitment to defense. We've been really good at inner slot stuff all year, and our guys have just taken it to a different level, because we know how dangerous they are.”

That commitment showed up in layers. Sticks in lanes. Bodies boxing out. Forwards collapsing low. Defensemen sealing off the middle before plays could even develop.

It was impressive how Dallas defended. But was this about how they defended or was it about the Wild being too perimeter?

“I can't speak on them [Minnesota] but we know how we want to play within our system,” Stars defenseman Tyler Myers said. “We believe we have a really good system to defend, and that's our main focus. Just be as consistent with that as possible and keep progressing as we go.”

For Minnesota, the frustration wasn’t just about what Dallas did, it was also about what the Wild didn’t.

They had zone time. They had possession. But they rarely forced Dallas out of its structure. And that’s where the problem lives.

“Well, I think it's a little bit of both,” Wild forward Nick Foligno said. “I think we just, I don't think we're quick to trigger. I don't think we are understanding of the some of the key spots that we can clue in on, but they're tightening up, right? Like this is what happens as you get on the series. And I think there are a lot of things we're doing to negate them as well. So it's just understanding the chess match that kind of goes between the two teams and knowing that they're going to do things to negate our offense and vice versa. We're going to have to fight a little harder to get inside. And that's part of playoff hockey. It hurts to win. It hurts to get on the inside, but it's the price you pay to get the success that you need. It's an area of focus for both teams. It's not just us. They're doing the same thing. It definitely needs to be an area that we address and get to. And hopefully tomorrow we can do that.”