A couple of teams from the round robin portion of the playoffs meet again, as the top-seeded Vegas Golden Knights took on the third-seed Dallas Stars. Unlike the round robin though, the results would be much different. Thanks to (among other things) strong goaltending, Dallas managed to knock off Vegas in five games, and earned a spot in the Stanley Cup Finals.
Games
Dallas Stars - 1
Vegas Golden Knights - 0
Dallas managed to get an early lead in this one. Minutes into the period, Jamie Benn's shot would be blocked, but John Klingberg was there to take the loose puck and wrist it past Marc-Andre Fleury. Shot were traded during the first, but the score would remain the same. Nick Cousins may have had the best chance to tie the game for Vegas, but he could not bury the rebound attempt. Dallas would control most of the second, while it took Vegas about nine minutes to get their first shot of the period. Roles reversed in the third, as Vegas dominated the shot counter while Dallas was limited in their attempts. Khudobin was up to the task though, as the Stars goaltender ended up saving 25 shots in the shutout effort. Klingberg's goal ended up being the lone one of the game, as Dallas taking the first game of the series.
Dallas Stars - 0
Vegas Golden Knights - 3
A relatively uneventful first gave way yo a much better second period. The Golden Knights finally got on the board in the series, as about five minutes into the second, Paul Statsny redirected a pass from Max Pacioretty in to the Stars net. Dallas soon were getting into penalty trouble, which would cost them. One one of their powerplays, William Karlsson wrist shot found its way under the pad of Khudobin to extend Vegas' lead. The Golden Knight looked to have another powerplay goal minutes later, as Shea Theodore's one-timer beat Khudobin. The goal was challenged by the Stars though, as Pacioretty bumped into Khudobin during his save attempt. The challenge proved to be successful for Dallas, as the goal was waved off. Vegas ended up getting their third goal later in the period, as Tomas Nosek finished off a 3-on-1, tic-tac-toe play. Dallas changed goalies to start the third, as Jake Oettinger made his NHL debut. The rookie netminder did well, stopping five shots and letting none get by him. The other end saw Lehner stay perfect through the 60 minutes, stopping 24 shots for the shutout. The 3-0 win helped Vegas tie the series.
Vegas Golden Knights - 2
Dallas Stars - 3 (OT)
Khudobin looked to rebound after getting pulled last game, and the Stars goalie was up to the task. While Vegas dominated the shot counter in the first period, Khudobin wasn't letting anything by him. Lehner was much of the same, just with a lighter workload. The board finally saw a tally late in the second. After blocking a shot, the Stars countered immediately, as Miro Heiskanen sent Jamie Oleksiak on a breakaway. The Stars defenseman showed he had some offense as well, deking out Lehner and sliding the puck between Lehner's pad and the post to put Dallas in the lead. A powerplay in the third helped Vegas tie the game, as Shea Theodore's shot deflected off a defender;s stick and over the shoulder of Khudobin. About four minutes later, Jamie Benn took back the lead for Dallas, as the Stars forward beat Lehner five-hole. Dallas' new lead would last all of five minutes. In the Stars zone, Alex Tuch circled with the puck and snapped a shot, which deflected off of Mark Stone and into the net. Dallas challenged the goal as it looked like Stone may have interfered with Khudobin. It would be unsuccessful though, as the goal stood. Vegas had a couple chances to take the lead on the ensuing powerplay, but Khudobin managed to get in their way. Benn had a chance to win the game in the dying seconds of regulation, but Lehner got in front of the shot to keep it out. Overtime was needed to determine a winner of this game.Just 31 seconds was needed in the extra frame, as Alexander Radulov's wrist shot beat Lehner's blocker and pinged off the post before entering the net. The overtime win put Dallas back in the series lead.
Vegas Golden Knights - 1
Dallas Stars - 2
Like the past few games, the first period remained goalless. Once again, Khudobin was the busier of the two goalies, stopping 13 shots in the first 20 minutes (Lehner, by comparison, stopped five). Vegas looked to get one early in the second, as Karlsson's shot managed to sneak by Khudobin. However, the Dallas goalie managed to drop and turn his pads quick enough to stop the puck from getting across the goal line. The Golden Knights did open the scoring minutes later, thanks to their third powerplay of the game. From a faceoff, the puck was won back to Nate Schmidt. Schmidt hit his defense partner Alec Martinez with a quick pass, leading to Martinez one-timing it toward the Stars net. Khudobin wasn't about to get a piece of it, as the puck snuck under his blocker and into the net. Vegas didn't think one goal was enough, and kept up the pressure, looking to extend their lead. Khudobin stood in the way though, not wanting to give up another goal. Midway through the period, Joe Pavelski got Dallas on the board, as his shot hit Schmidt's stick and floated pass Lehner. Things didn't look good for the Vegas netminder, as minutes later he was shaken up after taking a shot to the neck. After staying down for a brief moment, he would get up and remain in the game. Dallas would get a powerplay goal of their own late in the period. A shot from Klingberg was stopped, but Benn collected the rebound and put it on net, as the puck bounced off Lehner's arm en route to the back of the net. The late goal gave the Stars the lead for the first time in this game. Vegas got a couple good chances in the third, including Pacioretty ringing one off the post. However, even a 5-on-3 wasn't enough to get the Golden Knights the tying goal. The Stars hung on to take the game 2-1, and were one win away from advancing.
Dallas Stars - 3 (OT)
Vegas Golden Knights - 2
For the first time since Game 1, there would be a first period goal. Just over eight minutes in, Theodore sprung Chandler Stephenson on a breakaway. The Golden Knights forward made no mistake on his breakaway attempt, tucking the puck past Khudobin to give Vegas the lead. Much like the last game, Vegas didn't want to leave it to just one goal, and pressed to extend their lead. While they lead in shots through two periods, they could not get another goal. Dallas had a few chances of their own (highlighted by a Denis Gurianov breakaway attempt), but could not get on the board. Things did change in the third period. Just 15 seconds in, a 2-on-1 by Vegas saw Reilly Smith keep the puck and snap it over the glove of Khudobin, making it 2-0 for the Golden Knights. Halfway through the period, a scramble in front of the Vegas net resulted in Benn corralling the loose puck and beating a screened Lehner, bringing Dallas to within a goal to tie. Later in the period, a powerplay for the Stars helped them tie the game. Klingberg's shot was blocked and tricked to the side of the net. Joel Kirivanta was there though, as Dallas' hero from the previous series lifted the puck over a downed Lehner to make it a 2-2 game. Regulation time would end with no other goals scored, resulting in overtime being needed for the second time this series. Just minutes into overtime, Zach Whitecould was called for a delay of game penalty after hitting the puck out of play. During the latter-half of the powerplay, Dallas worked the puck around the perimeter. It wound up going to Gurianov, whose one-timer went under the glove of Lehner and into the back of the net. Thjs goal secured the series win for the Stars, as they moved on to the Stanley Cup Final.
Three Thoughts on the Series
- Jamie Benn's team, still not going down.
- Maybe the Golden Knights should work on their penalty kill in elimination games.
- "WE'RE NOT GOING HOME"
Picture of the Series
That ones gotta sting. Even as a goalie I never got why some guys don't play with a throat protector on their mask.
Highlight of the Series
The passing by the Golden Knights on this goal is very nice.
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