Dallas Stars 2023 Playoffs Thread of Dominance

[Longhorn_Fan68 33881]

Just now, C-Man said:

Maybe so. Doesn't change my opinion that the Panthers are better than Seattle today.

I never challenged that opinion. you can stop defending yourself now. 🤣

[YGIFS 19452]

2 minutes ago, Longhorn_Fan68 said:

I'm an admin of an Austin Stars group with over 500 members and we have trouble getting 10 people out for a game, people have been gathering at various places like Pluckers Lakeline, Lavaca Street, and the Tavern. Nosh and Bevy and and a few others have been mentioned as well. I generally watch at home as I'm watching my ducats right now.

Just googled Nosh & Bevvy.  Had no idea that existed or what the fuck the Spectrum Center is.  But pos rep on heads up for the Tavern and Lavaca Street.  Would love to catch one game over dinner with some knowledgeable fans.  No jinx-finals start 3 June.    

[C-Man 27247]

Someone fill me on Vegas goaltending. I didn't catch as much of the Vegas-Edmonton series as I normally might due to start times and needing to take a night off after Toronto/Stars back-to-back nights for the most part. I didn't realize they've used five different netminders this season. Is Brossoit out for good? Has Hill been so good he's going to keep the gig until he proves otherwise? Quick isn't in the equation at all is he?

(I just realized that Vegas is in the conference finals for the fourth time in six season. That's damn impressive. Razor was on with the Musers this AM and said this series will get nasty, a big contrast to the last series with Seattle where there was very little animosity.)

[dcar00 14321]

Great series win.  Seattle was tough.  didn't think our D had it in them to be honest, but otter was huge and the D did a great job holding them to 1 goal.

[Longhorn_Fan68 33881]

3 minutes ago, C-Man said:

Someone fill me on Vegas goaltending. I didn't catch as much of the Vegas-Edmonton series as I normally might due to start times and needing to take a night off after Toronto/Stars back-to-back nights for the most part. I didn't realize they've used five different netminders this season. Is Brossoit out for good? Has Hill been so good he's going to keep the gig until he proves otherwise? Quick isn't in the equation at all is he?

(I just realized that Vegas is in the conference finals for the fourth time in six season. That's damn impressive. Razor was on with the Musers this AM and said this series will get nasty, a big contrast to the last series with Seattle where there was very little animosity.)

Thompson looked like the next golden boy for Vegas, but he got hurt. Then they rode Brossoit and Hill for much of the season, but then went and got Quick for some reason. Good that they did because now they're down to Hill and Quick, who hasn't see any playoff action yet (this season). Brossoit is still hurt but I think that's probably good for VGK. Hill and Quick are probably the better options anyway. 

[C-Man 27247]

1 hour ago, Longhorn_Fan68 said:

I never challenged that opinion. you can stop defending yourself now. 🤣

That was more directed at Porterhouse.

 

51 minutes ago, Longhorn_Fan68 said:

Thompson looked like the next golden boy for Vegas, but he got hurt. Then they rode Brossoit and Hill for much of the season, but then went and got Quick for some reason. Good that they did because now they're down to Hill and Quick, who hasn't see any playoff action yet (this season). Brossoit is still hurt but I think that's probably good for VGK. Hill and Quick are probably the better options anyway. 

I think they got Quick as insurance. Brossoit hurt his shoulder in a collision with his own guy, right? The stats show Hill has been pretty good the last week or so.

I will say this -- pretty sure we don't win this series if Robo puts up another goose-egg in goals.

[Pato del Muerto 52553]

I notice that hakanpaa is on the injury list as day to day- wonder if he is hurting.

also, Dallas went 3-0 vs Vegas this year with 2 of them in Vegas, and 2 were shootout wins. 

[Longhorn_Fan68 33881]

17 minutes ago, Pato del Muerto said:

I notice that hakanpaa is on the injury list as day to day- wonder if he is hurting.

also, Dallas went 3-0 vs Vegas this year with 2 of them in Vegas, and 2 were shootout wins. 

maybe some gamesmanship by the Stars? he looked fine last night, but admittedly I wasn't focused on him

[Pato del Muerto 52553]

1 minute ago, Longhorn_Fan68 said:

maybe some gamesmanship by the Stars? he looked fine last night, but admittedly I wasn't focused on him

He was a scratch last night, for Miller. 

[Longhorn_Fan68 33881]

4 minutes ago, Pato del Muerto said:

He was a scratch last night, for Miller. 

oh shit, that's right. he was part of the morning skate but ended up being switched out at the last minute. thanks for the reminder, last night is a bit of a blur 🤣

[Guest]

37 minutes ago, Pato del Muerto said:

I notice that hakanpaa is on the injury list as day to day- wonder if he is hurting.

also, Dallas went 3-0 vs Vegas this year with 2 of them in Vegas, and 2 were shootout wins. 

Scratch. I like Jani. Seattle was a BAD matchup for him with their speed. 

[C-Man 27247]

22 minutes ago, Longhorn_Fan68 said:

oh shit, that's right. he was part of the morning skate but ended up being switched out at the last minute. thanks for the reminder, last night is a bit of a blur 🤣

 

8 minutes ago, Porterhouse said:

Scratch. I like Jani. Seattle was a BAD matchup for him with their speed. 

I think Hakanpaa is actually dealing with something physical (can't remember if it was something early in Seattle series or at the tail-end of Minnesota). How serious is it? We won't know until the season is done and dusted. The team just looked more collected with Miller in there. If Jani is healthy, I like him as one of our top six but you don't want him as a liability. For whatever reason, he and Lindell were horribad in Game 6 and Lindell was on the ice for Seattle's lone goal last night too.

I'm no Joel Hanley fan but the Stars are 4-1 in games he plays in the playoffs this year, including 3-1 against Seattle. (BTW, it's beyond confusing having a Harley and a Hanley and they were 55 and 44, respectively.)

[Longhorn_Fan68 33881]

we kept referring to them as the Ha_ley's

[Beau Vine 54342]

2 hours ago, YGIFS said:

But for realz---where in Austin do Stars fans get together to watch?  Would love to have an excuse to watch a full game after work without somebody asking me to explain Icing.  Mainly 'cause I still don't know.  

 

[YGIFS 19452]

I never realized how much that guy reminds me of Brent from "Flight of the Conchords" 

[Longhorn_Fan68 33881]

I hadn't seen this before. I think it's from the cup dvd

 

[C-Man 27247]

9 hours ago, YGIFS said:

I never realized how much that guy reminds me of Brent from "Flight of the Conchords" 

Bret

[YGIFS 19452]

12 hours ago, C-Man said:

Bret

Present.

[C-Man 27247]

1 hour ago, YGIFS said:

Present.

Fucking love Murray

[YGIFS 19452]

I could see Hewitt being a Stars fan.  

[Beau Vine 54342]

We went up to Cedar Park last night to see the baby Stars' playoff game.  Lost 4-3 on a goal with 1 minute left.  Not a whole lot of talent down there, either.  Curtis McKenzie was their best player last night.  Ouch.  Tufte is freaking huuuge, but that's the absolute extent of what you can say good about him, because he's not physical and he really seems to not know how to use his size.  Bourque didn't look so hot either, and he's absolutely tiny.  Diamani was pretty invisible, and I'm not sure how he got the prospect sheen in the first place.  There was literally no one who looked like a future NHL regular.  

[KennyPowders 331]

The tavern usually has 15-20 Stars fans in it and they put on the sound. 

[C-Man 27247]

The Athletic has an executive, a coach and a scout pick the conference finals: https://theathletic.com/4525297/2023/05/18/nhl-playoff-predictions-5/

Quote

If you turn back the calendar one year — to the spring of 2022 — an Eastern Conference final between the Florida Panthers and the Carolina Hurricanes would not have qualified as much of a long shot.

That year, the Panthers were the NHL’s Presidents’ Trophy winners, after posting the best record in the league — 58 wins, 122 points. The Hurricanes weren’t far behind — third overall, with 54 wins and 116 points. (The team sandwiched in between them, the Colorado Avalanche, eventually went on to win the Stanley Cup a year ago.)

This year, of course, things went far differently, especially for the Panthers, who were touch-and-go just to make the playoffs. Their 92-point total, had they been playing in the Western Conference, would have left them outside the top 16 altogether. But they’ve pieced together an extraordinary playoff thus far, knocking off the regular-season champion Boston Bruins in the opening round and then the Toronto Maple Leafs in the second round. What is that old saying? If it’s your week, it could be your year? Maybe the Panthers will ride their 11th-hour surge, the way the St. Louis Blues did a few years back, right into the winner’s circle. Right now, it’s two series down, two to go.

Carolina, meanwhile, has flown under the radar as much as any team can in the postseason. They knocked off the New York Islanders in the first round and the New Jersey Devils in the second; an easier path to the third round than Florida undertook. And because both teams managed to get the job done relatively quickly, they’ll have some valuable rest before the conference finals begin.

Over in the West, it took longer to sort out the combatants. Vegas eliminated Connor McDavid and the high-flying Edmonton Oilers in six games, while the Dallas Stars went right down to the wire before they defeated the second-year Seattle Kraken in seven.

Thankfully, the NHL didn’t rush to get the Vegas-Dallas series started until Friday, which gives the two teams a chance to catch their collective breaths before the third round begins. After digging deep into their respective emotional wells to advance, one key will be to see which team resets first and gets the adrenaline going again. Often, in the third round, fatigue becomes the unspoken factor – and puts an even greater importance on getting out of the gate fast.

Once again, we’ve reassembled our panel — of a veteran executive, coach and scout — to look into their crystal balls and anticipate what comes next. Here’s what they had to say.

Eastern Conference

Hurricanes vs. Panthers

First-year Panthers coach Paul Maurice previously coached the Hurricanes twice — the first seven years of the franchise’s history in Carolina after relocating from Hartford in 1997, and then again, beginning in 2008, after two years behind the Leafs bench, where he lasted a further three-plus years before getting fired again. He and current Hurricanes coach Rod Brind’Amour rank one-two in terms of coaching wins in franchise history (384 for Maurice, 226 for Brind’Amour). The series also features a Staal family reunion — Eric and Marc Staal play for the Panthers, and Jordan is the Hurricanes captain. The Hurricanes have the best penalty-killing unit of the playoffs thus far, connecting at 90 percent efficiency, while Florida is only at 65.8 percent. Special teams, obviously, will be a factor.

Despite the fact Carolina is muddling along without Andrei Svechnikov and Teuvo Teravainen, two top-six forwards, they are averaging a respectable 3.64 goals per game in these playoffs, good for fourth overall, and just a shade behind Dallas and Edmonton.

Theirs is a balanced attack — Sebastien Aho and Jesper Fast share the goal-scoring lead with five apiece. As always, the key to their success will focus on their top four on the blue line: The ageless Brent Burns, ably complemented by Jaccob Slavin, Brett Pesce and Brady Skjei.

The goaltending matchup is intriguing. The Panthers rode Alex Lyon’s strong play into the playoffs, but when he faltered in the opening round, they switched to $10 million man Sergei Bobrovsky, who started playing like a two-time Vezina Trophy winner again. If Bobrovsky can stay in the zone, he could be a difference maker. Similarly, the Hurricanes began the playoffs with their nominal backup, Antti Raanta, but have subsequently switched to Freddie Andersen.

Bobrovsky is 7-2 with a .918 save percentage and a 2.82 goals-against average. Andersen is 5-0 with a .931 save percentage and a 1.80 GAA. Both are capable of excellent play. Both are capable of blinking at any time as well.

“With Carolina’s goaltending, who knows?” asked our scout. “It’s Freddie to start, but they’ve used all three of them in the playoffs. It just seems to be the Carolina way. They pull forwards out of their hat and pull goalies out of their hat and they just seem to find a way to win. That’s what they do. But I’m picking Florida. It’s a tough call, but I haven’t picked them in the first two rounds and they’ve won, so now I’m going to go with them. I like their resolve. In the first two rounds, you can really see their resolve come through. They look like a playoff team. That was quite a battle against Toronto, those last two games — and they were in it. They won those battles. Matthew Tkachuk is obviously their leader and Bob is on a roll — but that’s been his career. He’s had streaks — long streaks — where he’s got it done and he looked really good against Toronto. He looked like a Vezina Trophy winner in that series.”

But our other two panellists picked the Hurricanes.

“Does some of the luster or the pixie dust wear off Florida, now that they’ve had this long break?” wondered our coach. “They’ve been playing playoff longer than anyone that’s left, because they had to play playoff hockey for two months just to get in. Now, you’ve got to rev this thing up again. Up to now, it’s been, ‘play, day off, travel, play, keep going.’ Now they’ve had a little bit of a break. I’ll be interested in seeing how that affects them. The Hurricanes are probably the strongest forechecking team left. If Florida’s defense can handle that forecheck, and the goalie continues to play well, I think it’s a coin flip, but I’ll go with Carolina in 7.”

Not surprisingly, our executive focused on two team-building strategies and praised Florida for two things: the difference the Tkachuk trade made on Florida’s psyche and how the Panthers’ six-man starting defence corps was built.

“Florida’s defense includes two defensemen who were acquired on waivers and three who were signed as unrestricted free agents,” noted our executive. “In other words, every other team in the NHL could have had five of Florida’s six defensemen. Brandon Montour is their leader, and after two rounds, he’s a Conn Smythe candidate. Tkachuk is the player Bill Zito stole from the Calgary Flames. Not only does he have 16 points in 12 games, both Boston and Toronto spent a lot of time worrying about things he did or said. He is a perfect playoff player who eventually gets under the skin of the opposing team. Carolina needs to make sure that doesn’t happen in this round. The team that wins this round will be the one that gets the most consistent goaltending. It’ll be a long series, but if Freddie finds a way to stay hot, Carolina wins at home in 7 games.”

Executive: Carolina in 7
Coach: Carolina in 7
Scout: Florida in 6
Consensus: Hurricanes advance

Western Conference

Golden Knights vs. Stars

The clear overriding storyline in the Golden Knights-Stars series is behind the bench, where Dallas coach Peter DeBoer will face a Vegas team that fired him exactly a year ago.

Our coach believes DeBoer’s previous experience coaching the Golden Knights will give him an edge in the series, because he will have insight into both the strengths — and shortcomings — of many of the Vegas players.

“There’s motivation there for Pete,” said our coach. “He’ll know where there might be chinks in the armor and what may work against them. It’s a good matchup. I have to go with Dallas, just because of the goalie (Jake Oettinger). I don’t know where Vegas will go if (Adin) Hill suddenly gets cold. To Jonathan Quick?”

Our executive, meanwhile, predicted “a great series between two very talented offensive hockey teams” and noted how the No. 1 line from the Golden Knights’ magical run to the 2018 Stanley Cup Final — Jonathan Marchessault, Reilly Smith and William Karlson — all made important contributions in the win over Edmonton: Marchessault and Smith with their goal scoring in the decisive game, and Karlsson because of his persistent defensive work against Oilers star Connor McDavid.

“This year was also the coming out party for Jack Eichel,” said our executive. “It’s not just six goals and 14 points in 11 games. He’s become the team-first guy that people were not sure he could become. And of course, Mark Stone is this season’s Nikita Kucherov or Patrick Kane, two stars who missed a large part of the regular season but miraculously became healthy when the playoffs began. His leadership, both on and off the ice, is a big reason why Vegas is where they are.”

On the Dallas side, our executive asserted that the Stars have “the best goalie remaining in Jake Oettinger, the best defenseman remaining in Miro Heiskanen and the best forward remaining in Roope Hintz” and noted that they survived the Kraken series despite not getting a goal from 46-goal man Jason Robertson.

Both our executive and our coach also pointed out Joe Pavelski’s influence on the Stars.

“For me, it’s the Pavelski factor,” said our coach. “He stirs the drink there. He hasn’t won yet. He’s 38. There’s energy there. When you get to this point of the playoffs, you’re always looking for energy. Pavelski coming back for Dallas in Round 2, after being injured in the first round, gave them energy.

“And I’m not worried about Robertson,” he added. “He’s doing a lot of good things for them, team-wise. He’s putting pucks in behind the defense. He’s playing more of a complete team game, even though he’s not scoring. And it’s not like he isn’t getting chances. They’re just not going in, or the goalie’s making a big save. Against Seattle in Game 7, he could have scored twice. Probably in the regular season, both go in. From a coaching perspective, I see a guy that’s getting chances and it’s only a matter of time before he’s going to break through. Pete used him at the end of the game, when protecting the lead. That tells you there’s no cheat in his game.”

Our executive is also bullish on Heiskanen, who he sees as “the Cale Makar of this year’s playoffs. Ryan Suter has been very good and complements Heiskanen well. And while Oettinger may have the odd bad game, when the chips are down and Dallas needs a big save or a big game, he is becoming one of the best in the NHL in a big moment. If everything else balances out, Oettinger will be the better goalie and thus make the difference.”

But we have a split decision here, because our scout is picking Vegas, pointing out that Oettinger’s play in these playoffs hasn’t been nearly as consistent as it was a year ago. He also thinks Hill, the current starter in Vegas, is good enough to get the job done, based on the defense playing in front of him.

“Nothing really bothers Hill,” said our scout. “It’s water off a duck’s back with him when he gives up a goal. He’s a hardworking kid and he was really good against Edmonton; and really, he won the last game for them. On that team, behind that defense, he’s more than capable. He’s been more consistent than Oettinger, who’s been up and down in the playoffs.

“Vegas had an easier time beating out Edmonton than Dallas did in beating Seattle — and I think Edmonton is a much better team than Seattle. I like the way Vegas plays. They have a great defense in front of Hill and a deep team, much like Seattle, except they also have stars: Jack Eichel. Mark Stone. Alex Pietrangelo. Both series are tough calls, but I’m going with Vegas in 7.”

Executive: Dallas in 6
Coach: Dallas in 6
Scout: Vegas in 7
Consensus: Stars advance

 

[Skipper 6179]

The board is pretty quiet before a big game.  Let's see if we can start this series off with a W tonight.

[Vic Mackey 47107]

.

[Zepol87 9189]

Fucking go time!!

[Surly Bevo 25100]

Those Vegas unis are fucking hideous.  

[Longhorn_Fan68 33881]

Go Stars!!!!!!!!!

[markstanco 12586]

Those Vegas unis are fucking hideous.  

Yea it is xfl-ish.

[markstanco 12586]

Texas Stars showing up so far

[Surly Bevo 25100]

Getting bullied by the forecheck.  It ain't pretty hockey but Vegas is generating offense.

[markstanco 12586]

Has anybody ever seen Robo and Romo in the same room?

[Surly Bevo 25100]

Can we convert here please

[Zepol87 9189]

Get some life here baby

[Surly Bevo 25100]

Did they water the field?  Both these teams look like they are playing this game in mud

[cactusflinthead 27601]

Robo!

[shadow_operative2.0 16013]

Roope, bitches! 

Edited May 20, 2023 by shadow_operative2.0
Or Robo, either way.

[Surly Bevo 25100]

FUCK YEA

[Zepol87 9189]

Oh shit!!! Robertson. Close your legs girl 

[Zeus 6113]

LETS FUCKING GOOOOOO

ROBERTSON FINALLY 

[Pato del Muerto 52553]

1 minute ago, cactusflinthead said:

Robo!

[Surly Bevo 25100]

28 minutes ago, markstanco said:

Yea it is xfl-ish.

Love me some mustard....it should never make its way on to a sports jersey

Edited May 20, 2023 by Surly Bevo

[markstanco 12586]

A 5 on 5 goal. Let’s go robo

[cactusflinthead 27601]

4 minutes ago, Surly Bevo said:

Love me some mustard....it should never make its way on to a sports jersey

I can see some shimmery gold threads in the close ups, but it's Nashville Mustard Yellow at a distance.

 

[Longhorn_Fan68 33881]

Hopefully that gets Robo unclogged.

Which feed y'all watching? I've got the sportsnet feed and they're fairly hype on Dallas, surprisingly. 

[Longhorn_Fan68 33881]

 

 

[cactusflinthead 27601]

Watching ESPN with the Razor time warp on the radio.

#Asynchronous 

[Zepol87 9189]

Just now, cactusflinthead said:

Watching ESPN with the Razor time warp on the radio.

#Asynchronous 

I fucking wish I’m high and can’t get it synced right in the app

[Gucci_Suit 2655]

I just love Dallas Stars playoff hockey so fucking much. 

[Skipper 6179]

Settled in to the game nicely after the first 10 minutes.   Although we can all just forget that last PP happened.  Need to match their intensity to start this period.