The NHL trade deadline is behind us, and now it’s full steam ahead toward the postseason. We started the road to the playoffs with a bang as the Dallas Stars (41-20-2) battled the Edmonton Oilers (37-22-4) in a Western Conference Final rematch. This was their second of three meetings, with Dallas winning the first game 4-1 on Oct. 19 in Dallas. This game looked to be a blowout, as Edmonton had a commanding four-goal lead at the second intermission. But Dallas battled back, scoring three unanswered goals in the third period. However, that wasn’t enough as the Oilers held on for the 5-4 victory. Both teams were opportunistic, as there were nine goals scored on only 52 shots.
Game Recap
Dallas opened the scoring on the power play 5:48 into the opening frame. Mikko Rantanen threw the puck on the net, and it bounced right to Wyatt Johnston, who made no mistake, going through the legs of goaltender Stuart Skinner.
24 seconds later, Edmonton tied the game at one. Connor McDavid circled the offensive zone, went behind the net and tried to tuck the puck around goaltender Jake Oettinger. The initial chance was stopped, but Zach Hyman jammed in the loose puck. Then, Hyman scored his second of the period 12:26 into the first. Jake Walman’s breakaway flip pass landed right on Hyman’s tape, and he went backhand, under the arm of the Stars’ netminder.
With 2:18 remaining in the first period, the Oilers made it 3-1. Leon Draisaitl entered the zone and found Evan Bouchard at the point. He slid the puck across to Viktor Arvidsson, whose one-timer found the twine for his eighth of the season. Edmonton took that lead into the intermission.
The Oilers made it 4-1 5:20 into the second period. McDavid gained speed through the neutral zone, slid the puck through Ilya Lyubushkin’s legs, went around the defender, and regained possession before going backhand, past Oettinger. Then, Connor Brown scored with 2:20 remaining to extend the lead to 5-1. Brown forced a turnover in the neutral zone and had a 2-on-1 with Mattias Janmark. His pass was blocked by the defender, but he got his own rebound and buried it for his eighth of the season. The Oilers were in full control and took a 5-1 lead through two periods.
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