Stars unravel following Heiskanen injury in Game 3 of Western 2nd Round

SEATTLE -- The Dallas Stars did not use Miro Heiskanen's injury as an excuse for their 7-2 loss to the Seattle Kraken in Game 3 of the Western Conference Second Round at Climate Pledge Arena on Sunday.

But the game changed in an instant when Heiskanen took a puck in the face early in the second period, with Seattle scoring four goals in 6:12 afterward to take a 4-0 lead.

And the question now is whether the series changed too. Heiskanen, one of the best defensemen in the NHL, did not return. Dallas trails 2-1 in the best-of-7 series entering Game 4 here Tuesday (9:30 p.m. ET; ESPN, SN, TVAS).

"Don't have anything yet," Stars coach Peter DeBoer said when asked for an update on Heiskanen. "I mean, obviously, he didn't come back. Pretty bad cut. So we'll know more tomorrow."

DeBoer did say the score was part of the reason Heiskanen didn't return. The Stars were behind 5-1 after the second.

"I think he would have liked to have come back," DeBoer said. "I think that we talked about it. I think that for sure the score played a part in that."

RELATED: [Complete Stars vs. Kraken series coverage]

The game was 0-0 when Kraken forward Tye Kartye fired a shot above the left circle. The puck hit Dallas defenseman Ryan Suter, and it rose high and wide right of the net, striking Heiskanen in the left cheek.

Heiskanen immediately dropped to all fours.

Forward Jordan Eberle collected the puck, pirouetted and slid it past goalie Jake Oettinger, giving Seattle a 1-0 lead at 2:10 of the second. As the fans roared, Heiskanen stayed down.

"It's a tough play when a guy is lying there," Eberle said, "but you just try to finish it out."

Heiskanen was helped off the ice, a bloody towel pressed to his face. Seattle forward Alex Wennberg scored at 3:36, defenseman Carson Soucy at 6:30 and forward Matty Beniers at 8:22.

After that puck hit Heiskanen, the Kraken scored on their next four shots.

"I mean, [Heiskaken is] obviously a big piece, but that's not why we lost," DeBoer said. "That's on our group. We should be able to handle that adversity and respond to that. They were the better team tonight, no ifs, ands or buts about that."

Heiskanen is a huge piece. He was not voted a finalist for the Norris Trophy, which goes to the best defenseman in the NHL, but he could have been. The Stars would argue he should have been.

He had 73 points (11 goals, 62 assists) in 79 games in the regular season, more than doubling his NHL career high and tying for fifth among NHL defensemen with Brandon Montour of the Florida Panthers and Rasmus Dahlin of the Buffalo Sabres. He averaged 25:29 of ice time per game, fifth among NHL skaters.

DeBoer was just talking at the morning skate about how the 23-year-old doesn't get enough recognition nationally.

"I think he's always been really solid in his own end," DeBoer said, "and I think the offensive piece was just waiting to kind of emerge."

Heiskanen entered the game averaging 29:45 of ice time per game during the Stanley Cup Playoffs, leading NHL skaters. He had seven assists in Dallas' first eight games.

"We know the caliber of player that he is," Eberle said. "He's obviously one of the best defensemen in the League. He moves the puck. He's probably one of the best skaters in the League too, and he's definitely a guy that we obviously need to finish checks on and play hard."

The Stars cannot afford to lose Heiskanen for any length of time, but they also cannot afford to unravel the way they did without him.

Oettinger allowed five goals on 17 shots and was pulled after two periods to avoid injury and save energy. DeBoer said he didn't pull him earlier because he didn't want to make him the scapegoat for how the group was playing.

"You've got to handle it, just the momentum of a hockey game," Stars forward Jamie Benn said. "You've got to find a way to shut it down quick and try to get momentum in your favor."

Benn, the captain, pointed a finger at himself.

"Other guys got to step up," Benn said. "I think, personally, I was probably one of our worst players, so we'll fix it. We'll move on, have a quick memory and get ready for Game 4."

The Stars lost 5-1 on the road in Game 3 of the first round, falling behind 2-1 in their series with the Minnesota Wild. They came back to win 3-2 in Game 4, then won 4-0 in Game 5 and 4-1 in Game 6 to win the series.

"I think the good news is, it really mirrors our Game 3 in Minnesota," DeBoer said. "We were in the exact same spot, played pretty much the exact same game and responded the right way in that series, so we've got to make sure that happens here."