The Dallas Stars had another chance to take an early lead in the series when they hosted the Colorado Avalanche in Game 1 of their second-round series on Tuesday night.
After Dallas started as well as possible with a 3-0 advantage until the 20th minute, Colorado's star player took over and scored three goals in the second and third periods to force overtime. Here Miles Wood sealed Colorado's victory with 8 minutes, 57 seconds left in his first overtime period.
Here are five thoughts on the Stars' 4-3 overtime loss in Game 1.
Star players unable to build on recent overtime success
The Stars struggled in overtime last year, going 8-14 in regulation during the regular season and 1-4 in the playoffs.
This year, they improved to 12 wins and 9 losses in overtime during the regular season, and got off to a strong start in the playoffs with Wyatt Johnston scoring the winning goal in overtime in Game 3 against the Golden Knights.
But Dallas was unable to build on that first win, losing in overtime for the second time in the postseason. Wood beat Miro Heiskanen on a loose puck and scored past Jake Oettinger in overtime.
This play was made even though Dallas had the better chance in overtime and had a 6-4 shooting advantage. Both Tyler Seguin and Johnston were good-looking back in the day.
“I was actually surprised by how well and how hard we pushed in overtime,” Stars coach Pete DeBoer said. “I thought we looked better at that point.”
Given how close the series is expected to be and how competitive it was in Game 1, these teams could go back to overtime at some point in the next six games. The Stars need to take advantage of opportunities when they have them.
The battle of stars to drive away Colorado continues.
In multiple regular season matchups between the Stars and Avalanche, Colorado was able to overcome huge deficits to take the lead or bring the game within one point late.
In the first meeting back in November, the Stars took a 3-0 lead early in the second period before the Avalanche scored six straight points to win 6-3. In the next matchup in January, Dallas held a two-goal lead with 10 minutes remaining, but Colorado tied it up on Nathan MacKinnon's goal in overtime and won. In the final game in April, the Stars led 5-2 and Colorado closed the gap to 5-4. Dallas pulled away with two goals late in the game.
Game 1 on Tuesday played out similarly, with the Stars holding a 3-0 lead by the first intermission. Ryan Suter and Johnston scored in the first 11 minutes, and Jamie Benn added a 3-on-5 goal.
Despite the early hole, Colorado used its power play to get things going, scoring two goals on the man advantage in the first 9:08 of the second period to close the gap to one point. McKinnon scored off a rebound just 39 seconds into the third period to tie the score.
The overtime game of the playoffs was a contest for all to see, with Colorado coming out with a slight edge.
“We controlled that game and we let it go, but we saw two games like that in the regular season against them, so we have to bounce back here and break up the homestand. ” said Stars forward Matt Duchene.
Deadly avalanche power play as advertised
The Avalanche had the fifth-best power play in the league during the regular season, converting on 24.5% of their attempts. With elite players like McKinnon and Cale Makar leading the group, the Stars knew they had to avoid the penalty kill to negate that advantage.
Dallas was successful in avoiding penalties early on, but it cost two bad penalties early in the second period. It was a slashing call from Evgeni Dadonov and a hook call from Craig Smith with no one behind Colorado's goal.
Colorado scored on its first two man-advantage opportunities of the series. Former star Valeri Nichushkin scored on a rebound, and Makar hit a shot midway through the period to make it 3-2.
“They have a great power play and a lot of skill,” Ben said. “You have to watch the video, learn from it and move on.”
Benn scored on a 5-on-3 late in the first period, giving Dallas a power play goal of its own. Dallas struggled to score at 5-on-3 all season, and only scored his first goal with that advantage in Game 81, but in the playoffs he was able to score on his first attempt.
The Stars finished the quarter on the power play.
Special teams could be a game-changer in the series, and the Stars will need to do everything in their power to keep Colorado even.
Colorado's star power causes early challenges
Dallas recognized the challenge of facing some of the league's top players on Colorado's roster. McKinnon was named a finalist for the Hart Trophy, the league's MVP award, on Tuesday morning. Makar was named a Norris Trophy finalist as the league's top defensive player.
Colorado's top players played a key role in helping the team get back into the game after trailing 3-0 early. Top-line forward Nichushkin had the first goal and assist. Makar scored the next goal and an assist. McKinnon tied the score with a rebound.
The Stars had no answers for these three in Game 1, when they took control of the game. We'll have to find out later in the series.
“At the end of the night, when you look at the score sheet, I think their big men had a great performance and were all over the score sheet. Some of our points didn't show up on the score sheet for us to step up,'' DeBoer said. “We've been waiting for the series and the game for some of that.”
Changes in goaltending from the first series
Dallas and Vegas' goaltenders in the first round dictated much of the series, as Oettinger, Logan Thompson, and Addin Hill were phenomenal.
The first glimpse of Dallas and Colorado's second-round matchup showed the changing role goaltenders will play in the series.
Dallas entered the game with a big advantage in net, as Avalanche goaltender Alexander Georgiev had a rocky first series against Winnipeg. He allowed seven points in Game 1 against Winnipeg and had a tough start against Dallas, giving up three points on his first nine shots.
From there, Dallas made just seven shots the rest of regulation. Oettinger, on the other hand, was hit with five shots in the first period, then allowed 17 shots in the next two periods, allowing three of them. He allowed four goals on 26 total shots.
Georgiev gave his all in extra time, making important saves on Seguin and Johnston, giving his team a chance for victory.
Read more of The Dallas Morning News' coverage of the Stars here.
