On Friday, the Dallas Stars earned their way back into the playoffs for the first time since 2008.
On Saturday, the Stars learned who they would meet in the first round.
By virtue of the two points earned in a shootout win over the Los Angeles Kings, the Anaheim Ducks clinched the top seed in the Western Conference regardless of the outcome of their Sunday game against the Colorado Avalanche. That means the Stars, as the second wild card in the West, will play the Ducks in the first round.
It also means the Stars will be the team slotted into the “Pacific Division” bracket for the first (and possibly second, should they advance) round. The winner of the Ducks-Stars series will play the winner of the Kings and San Jose Sharks.
My, a first-round meeting with Anaheim followed by a possible second-round meeting with San Jose? That certainly sounds familiar…
There will be no shortage of storylines in this one, a prominent one being how the Stars will now try and dash the Stanley Cup dreams of long-time defensive stalwart Stephane Robidas. And they will see plenty of Corey Perry, Ryan Getzlaf and Teemu Selanne over the best-of-seven series as well.
We’ll have breakdowns of the matchup coming soon along with the schedule when it’s released and our picks for this series and the other first-round sets. Right now, the east is set but the winner of the Central still has to be determined tomorrow.
For now, we can all start dreaming of Duck Hunt again. Aren’t playoffs fun?