Heika’s Take: Stars continue ferocious rally, win third straight over Vegas

The Stars have handled adversity well this season.

They kept losing streaks to a minimum, shared the load when certain players had slumps, and played their best hockey when a lot was on the line.

So it shouldn’t surprise us that they have won three straight games and taken a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven First Round series with the Vegas Golden Knights.

Sure, the Stars lost the first two games at home. Sure, they are facing the defending Stanley Cup champions who have added to their roster from last season. And sure, one slip up in the past three games and things would have looked really bad. But, as it stands right now, Dallas has to win one of the next two games and they can get over a huge mountain and punch their ticket to the second round.

“It’s a credit to our group,” Stars coach Pete DeBoer said. “There weren’t a lot of believers at that point. We went on the road into a tough environment and rolled up our sleeves and went to work. You look up six days later and you have a 3-2 lead and a chance to close out the Stanley Cup Champions. The work’s not done yet, we’ve got some heavy lifting to do, but I’m proud of our group.”

The three-game winning streak reflected both the consistency of the team’s effort and ability, as well as the difference. Game 3 had the Stars dominating for long stretches, but still having to fight for an overtime win while riding strong play from 20-year-old Wyatt Johnston. Game 4 was more of a slogfest where the Stars received huge goals from Evgenii Dadonov and Ty Dellandrea, as well as a lockdown performance in the third period. Game 5 was a chess match where the Stars received power play goals from Matt Duchene and Jason Robertson, as well as a huge third period from goalie Jake Oettinger.

It was a great display of just what the team has been able to do this year.

“The day after Game 2, we all were in the same spot mentally – it was not a great feeling,” said Duchene. “It was a daunting task to go in there and win those games. We just dug deep and tried to put the best game out there. We’ve just stuck with it and kept battling and battling.”

Wednesday’s game was similar. Vegas took a 1-0 lead on an early power play goal by Mark Stone, but Dallas tied it up when Logan Stankoven made a beautiful delayed pass to Dadonov for a redirect in at the net. Duchene made it 2-1 on the power play, and then William Carrier forced a puck in that had the Stars reeling a bit. Esa Lindell misplayed Carrier behind the net and the forward rolled off and attempted a wraparound. Jason Robertson had a chance to stick check Carrier but didn’t. Oettinger failed to close down the post and the score was tied after 20 minutes.

That could have been a real gut punch, but the Stars responded well.

Tyler Seguin was playing a physical game, but took an illegal check to the head penalty eight minutes into the second period. Officials pondered giving Seguin a major, but reduced it to a minor and the Stars killed it off. Then, nine minutes later, Vegas defenseman Alex Pietrangelo took a roughing penalty when he slugged Seguin in the face behind the play. Again, officials pondered a major penalty, but reduced it to a minor.

Dallas cashed in, as Robertson had three shots blocked, but then finally got one through for his third goal of the playoffs. It turned out to be the game-winner.

“Petro is not a dirty player. I’m not a dirty player,” Seguin said. “I think there’s emotion in the game sometimes.”

But the Stars capitalized on the emotion this time, and they did it at a crucial time.

“There was a lot going on in that game. There was a lot of emotion both ways. There were a lot of questionable hits or not questionable hits,” DeBoer said. “I think it’s all about managing it. You’re not going to get all of those calls to go your way, and I thought our group managed the emotions of the game.”

That’s part of the challenge of battling the Golden Knights. Dallas captain Jamie Benn was suspended for two games when these two teams met in the Western Conference Final last season, and some of that friction still carries over.

“You’ve got to find a way to channel it and just control the aggression out there,” Vegas coach Bruce Cassidy said when asked if he was disappointed in Pietrangelo. “That’s an area you’ve got to take a number and try to get those things squared away. Dallas went through it last year. Benn got thrown out, so there’s a little bit of a learning curve that goes into it. We should know better, but it happens.”

The two teams settled in and played a fierce third period as Vegas had an 11-8 advantage in shots on goal, and Oettinger came up with a huge stop on Chandler Stephenson. Vegas changed its goalie and shuffled its lines, so the Stars hope they are putting some doubt into the mind of the opposition. Oettinger continues to get better each game, so the Stars also hope they are building confidence in their own group.

“They got a few good looks, but it was the best 20 minutes in the playoffs for Jake in the third when we needed him,” DeBoer said. “That’s all part of it. I talked at the beginning of the playoffs that you need goaltending, you need special teams, you need heroes from different parts of your roster to step up with a big play or a big goal and right now we’re getting contributions from all those things.”

And now they have a chance to get a big win and really take a step not only for this season, but for the franchise.

“It’s not over yet, and they’re going to be desperate on home ice,” Duchene said. “We expect their best game.”

This story was not subject to the approval of the National Hockey League or Dallas Stars Hockey Club.

Mike Heika is a Senior Staff Writer for DallasStars.com and has covered the Stars since 1994. Follow him on Twitter @MikeHeika.