The L.A. Stars couldn’t seem to find their rhythm with the man-advantage on Sunday night, as the visiting Salzburg RedBulls took both games of the 2 game regular-season series 2 games to none. The Stars squandered two 5-on-3’s and a 6-on-3 at the end of the game, falling on the wrong side of a 6-4 score.

The scoring was opened early as Philipp Kreuzer (Klay, Krammer) beat the Salzburg goaltender on a screened snapshot high just 15 seconds into the game.  Kreuzer tallied his second in the game just over a minute later on the PP off of a face-off scramble. Salzburg wasn’t about to fold, as they responded with four goals in an 5 minute span, two of them five-on-five, and two on the powerplay. Kreuzer (Kläy, Krammer) completed his hat-trick, batting one out of mid-air, pulling the Stars to within one.

The second period started positively, as Fellinger pulled the Stars even (Kläy). The Bulls, however, struck with two more unanswered goals, one on even strength, and the other, again, on the powerplay.  That was the extent of the scoring, as the Stars seemed confused and bewildered when having the man-advantage.  Their inability to create chances was disappointing, but O’Leary put it in perspective afterwards.

“I wish it were football, and we could decline the penalty!” he joked. “Seriously, though. At this level, the deciding factor is our special teams, and we need to be better. Too many people have their own agendas when it comes to where they are supposed to be, what they are supposed to do… it can’t work that way. We all need to be on the same page, and work towards the same goal. Then we are getting somewhere.”

The Stars have a chance to redeem themselves on Wednesday, as they travel to Linz to take on the BlackWings. On Saturday, the Stars host the Junior Caps of Vienna. Game time is 14:15 at the St. Pölten Eishalle.