Vegas, Dallas ‘don’t think anyone is surprised’ series heading to Game 7

DALLAS -- Pete DeBoer has been here before.

He’s 7-0 in Game 7 in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. When the Dallas Stars host the Vegas Golden Knights in Game 7 of the Western Conference First Round at American Airlines Center on Sunday (7:30 p.m. ET; SCRIPPS, MAX, truTV, TBS, BSSW, SN, TVAS), he will have it all figured out, right?

“It wish it was that easy,” the Stars coach said Saturday. “I wish it was just a pregame speech that I could just regurgitate every time and guarantee a win. Every one of those Game 7s is different, like tomorrow night will be.”

That’s the beauty of Game 7, especially in a series like this between Dallas, which won the Western Conference in the regular season, and Vegas, which won the Stanley Cup last season. Who knows what’s going to happen? Who knows who will be the hero?

In one sense, this series has had huge swings. The Golden Knights took a 2-0 series lead and were one shot from pulling ahead 3-0, but the Stars won Game 3 in overtime. That was the first of three straight wins that gave Dallas a 3-2 series lead. Then Vegas forced Game 7.

“It’s funny to hear these people say, ‘If you had told me we’d be in Game 7, I’d be pleased,’ and all that,” said Golden Knights coach Bruce Cassidy, who is 2-2 in Game 7 in his NHL coaching career. “We’re up 2-0, and we weren’t thinking about Game 7. They’re up 3-2; they’re not. You know what I mean? So, neither one of us is necessarily pleased with how it ended up playing out.”

In another sense, this series has been extremely tight. Each game has been decided by one goal or one goal plus an empty-netter. Vegas has 15 goals, Dallas 14. Dallas has 176 shots, Vegas 166.

Game 6 was playoff hockey at its best. At both ends of the ice, there was an inch here or an inch there that could have made the difference -- breakaways, near misses, goal posts, big saves. Finally, defenseman Noah Hanifin scored for the Golden Knights at 9:54 of the third period, and captain Mark Stone added an empty-netter at 19:41 to ice their 2-0 win at T-Mobile Arena on Friday.

“It’s probably apropos that it is Game 7,” Cassidy said. “My guess is it will be really close.”

Home-ice advantage hasn’t mattered much in this series. Each team is 1-2 at home. That said, the home team has won each of the past two games, and entering Saturday, the home team was 113-81 (.582) in Game 7 in NHL history.

“I’m confident,” DeBoer said. “I wouldn’t trade being on the road for being at home at American Airlines Center for anything, no matter what our record is. I’ve said this all along: I think home-ice advantage isn’t important until Game 7, and then I think it is important. That home crowd can really give you a boost, at least in my experience.”

The key to victory?

“For us, just sticking with it,” DeBoer said. “We’ve played six games against this team. I think we know what works, when it’s worked, and what hasn’t. They have the same book on us on their end. It comes down to which team can stick with their plan the longest, not step out of that structure, not get impatient. You need some bounces. You need some goaltending. You need special teams to be good.

“It all comes down to one night. I don’t think anyone is surprised this one is going to seven games with these two teams. It’s probably the way it should end.”

DeBoer has been part of every Game 7 the Golden Knights have played since entering the NHL as an expansion team in 2017-18. He coached the San Jose Sharks in 2019, when they came back from a three-goal deficit to defeat them in overtime in the first round. That is still Vegas’ only Game 7 loss. He coached the Golden Knights when they defeated the Vancouver Canucks in the second round in 2020 and the Minnesota Wild in the first round in 2021.

The Stars have 19 players who have played in a Game 7, led by forward Joe Pavelski, who has scored three goals and is 7-3 in Game 7. The last time they played a Game 7, defeating the Seattle Kraken on May 15 in the second round last season, forward Wyatt Johnston became the youngest player in NHL history to score a Game 7-clinching goal one day after his 20th birthday.

The Golden Knights have 15 players who have played in a Game 7, led by defensemen Alec Martinez and Alex Pietrangelo, each of whom has a goal and a 5-0 record in Game 7.

“It’s why you coach; it’s why you play hockey,” DeBoer said. “To have it here in Dallas at American Airlines Center is extra special. I’m excited for our group and our guys and our fans.”

NHL.com independent correspondents Taylor Baird and Paul Delos Santos contributed to this report