The NHL Playoffs had a Sunday matinee when the Dallas Stars traveled to Edmonton and challenged the Oilers. After splitting both games in Dallas, the Stars were trying to steal one on the road to balance out the series. They were in tough against forward Connor McDavid and the hometown crowd. Stats per ESPN unless otherwise noted.
The opening frame was close and entertaining for most of it. That changed at 14:02 when Edmonton defenceman Evan Bouchard banked his sixth of the playoffs. Just 36 seconds later, McDavid scored his sixth, both goals assisted by forward Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. The home squad went into the first intermission up 2-0.
The second period was the most perplexing of the game. The Stars dominated the period in most aspects, including shots on goal. They even killed off two consecutive penalties, including 18 seconds of five-on-three.
Fighting the whole period, Dallas forward Jason Robertson finally got one past the first star of the game, Edmonton goaltender Stuart Skinner, 15:35 into the frame. Near the end of the frame, the Stars were looking ahead to the third too early. At 19:41, McDavid scored his fifth of the playoffs to make it 3-1 at the second intermission.
The fat lady was singing just 3:25 into the third, Oilers forward Zach Hyman scoring off of Nugent-Hopkins’ third assist of the game. Edmonton is favored in high-scoring affairs, and Dallas couldn’t contain it. Despite a shots-on-goal advantage of 34-24 at the conclusion, Skinner did not allow another, while the home team netted two more insurance goals. Hyman scored next, making it two in a row from him, while defenseman John Klingberg got one on the power play.
The Oilers won their first home game of the series 6-1. Sportsnet reports post-game, “You have to have dominant nights, you have to have nights where maybe your goalie is better than theirs,” McDavid said. “You have to find ways to win different games different ways and we did again tonight.”
After losing by three in Game One, the Oilers have outscored the Stars 12-1. Dallas goaltender Jake Oettinger hasn’t been the issue. Per the NHL, he leaves the game with a 2.76 GAA this postseason. The coach and defense can’t find a way to continue Edmonton’s firepower. The skill of the playmakers and shooters is too much for the Stars’ backend.
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