Dallas Stars Daily Links: Overwhelmed Early
The Stars were able to recover, but a rough first period was enough to secure a Game 1 loss. Plus, Stanley Cup playoff updates, a curious decision by the Canucks, and more.
If you went to bed after the first period of last night’s game, you would be excused for thinking the Calgary Flames blew out the Dallas Stars by 4+ goals. The Stars were completely overwhelmed by the top Pacific seed, and were lucky to only surrender a single goal:
“I thought they came out flying,” Stars forward Michael Raffl said. “The building was electric. It was an awesome atmosphere to be in. They took it to us, especially the first 10 minutes.”
But to the Stars’ credit, they were able to buckle down starting in the second period. They ultimately lost 1-0 — that sole goal being the difference — but there were positives to build off of for Game 2:
“They thought they were going to run us out of the rink,” Stars coach Rick Bowness said. “And they didn’t. We put up a good fight. Clearly, the power play’s got to get clicking. That’s a big issue for us. Getting more pucks on the net, big issue. But the compete was there, the work ethic, everything was good.”
You can read more from Matthew DeFranks here.
Stars Stories
From before last night’s game: John Klingberg talks about the postseason and why it’s so special.
Kyle with a great feature on John Klingberg:
— Mike Heika (@MikeHeika) May 3, 2022
'I love it': John Klingberg's favorite time of the year is here https://t.co/BiTdSN8yLI via @NHLdotcom
Speaking of Klingberg...
John Klingberg said he did not know the rule about second altercations. Why was he so adamant to fight Rasmus Andersson? pic.twitter.com/JcRDE3EUrH
— Matthew DeFranks (@MDeFranks) May 4, 2022
Around the League
I love having four playoff games every night:
- It took triple overtime (and a goalie change), but the Pittsburgh Penguins took Game 1 from the New York Rangers 4-3. [Pensburgh]
- The Washington Capitals similarly upset the top seeded Florida Panthers 4-2. [Japers’ Rink]
- Finally, before you start wishing the Stars weren’t playing Calgary: the Colorado Avalanched drubbed the Nashville Predators 7-2. [Mile High Hockey]/
From that triple overtime game...
"It's crazy, but I guess that's my life. It's hockey."
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) May 4, 2022
Louis Domingue wasn't supposed to play. But, in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, unexpected heroes emerge — like a backup goaltender thrust into action midway through a triple-overtime Game 1. (@MikeyJ_MMA)https://t.co/1vGcac7R6K
Now that the Game 1s are over for all teams (seriously, I love the return to alternating nights), the ESPN crew offers their thoughts so far:
With one game in the books for all #StanleyCup series, what have we learned? Some takeaways from yours truly and @kristen_shilton. https://t.co/AbnM5ASTOm
— Greg Wyshynski (@wyshynski) May 4, 2022
Moving on to the next round of games, the Kyle Clifford will miss Game 2 after getting hit with a one game suspension:
#LeafsForever forward Kyle Clifford has been suspended for one game after hitting Ross Colton from behind just minutes into Game 1 between Toronto and Tampa Bay: https://t.co/Yp8PWpiMNZ
— The Hockey News (@TheHockeyNews) May 3, 2022
Meanwhile Jared Spurgeon only received a fine, likely due to a lack of injury from his actions:
Why Jared Spurgeon of @mnwild wasn’t suspended for cross-check vs. @StLouisBlues #NHL https://t.co/RVKBFV8Zkm
— Greg Wyshynski (@wyshynski) May 3, 2022
Finally, in non-playoff related news, the Vancouver Canucks won’t be extending Bruce Boudreau, at least not yet:
In inviting Bruce Boudreau to return to the Vancouver Canucks next season for his option year, president Jim Rutherford also opened the door for the head coach to leave. No extension will be offered, Rutherford said. (@imacSportsnet)https://t.co/0AZ9acoLDd
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) May 4, 2022
