*Photo from The Athletic*
Even in the last game of the regular season, there is truly anything that can happen. Thomas Harley scored, Joel Hanley scored, and the Dallas Stars defeated the Anaheim Ducks with a 4-2 victory on Friday night in Dallas.
With the win, the Stars have closed out the regular season on a high note. Besides clinching a playoff berth, the Stars went 3-0-1 in their final 4 regular season games. With a Nashville Predators loss, the Stars also jumped into the first wild card spot in the western conference. Now the focus shifts towards the playoffs.
Dallas forward Radek Faksa said that "It's the playoffs, everyone will be ready. That's what you play the whole season for. It's tough to get into the playoffs. So excited to play playoffs, and it's the best thing you can play in hockey, Stanley Cup Playoffs."
The lone goal of the first period came from Max Comtois, giving the Ducks a 1-0 lead 7:33 into the game. In the second period, Harley scored his first goal of the season, coming 3:13 into the second, tying things up 1-1. Hanley scored 5:45 into the period to make it 2-1 Stars, before Troy Terry evened things back up with his 37th goal, making it a 2-2 game after two periods.
In the 3rd period, Jason Robertson scored a power play goal, putting the Stars ahead by a 3-2 score with his 41st goal of the season, coming 9:56 into the period, assisted by Miro Heiskanen and Roope Hintz. Namestnikov added another goal later in the 3rd to make it 4-2 Stars, with assists from Tyler Seguin and Jake Oettinger.
Asked about scoring his first goal, Harley said it was "A heck of a lot of relief. I didn't score all year, down in the AHL and up here. It's definitely something that's been weighing on my mind. I don't usually celebrate like that, usually it's just like a little fist bump or something, but I was pumped up."
It was Oettinger who started for the Stars, picking up the win in this one. Oettinger stopped 19 out of the 21 shots he faced from the Ducks, recording a .905 save percentage in the win. Oettinger's record is now at a 30-15-1 mark to end the regular season.
Getting the start for the Ducks was John Gibson, who played only one period. Gibson stopped all 5 shots he faced in the first period before suffering an upper body injury. That brought in Anthony Stolarz, who only lasted one period as well. Stolarz saved 8 of the 10 shots he faced before suffering a lower body injury.
So who comes in now? Well, that's Emergency Backup Goalie(EBUG) Thomas Hodges, an EBUG based in Dallas. EBUG's are used when both goalies of either team get injured in the game, forcing an emergency option into the game. At the American Airlines center, that's Hodges. He stopped two of the 3 shots he faced, getting the loss. The last EBUG appearance was Dave Ayres, appearing and getting the win for the Carolina Hurricanes. A few EBUG's have served as backups this season, but never got in.
Asked about finally getting in an NHL game, Hodges said that "When I got the call, that 'hey, you're actually going to have to go out', because it was 50-50 there for a little bit, I was probably about as nervous as I've ever been. I've never played in front of so many people. Experience of a lifetime, and something I'm going to remember for the rest of my life for sure."
Up next, the Ducks regular season is over, as they have a whole offseason to load up for next year as they hope to make a run. The Stars get the playoffs started on Tuesday night, with game one against the Calgary Flames, with Oettinger to get the start.
Stars coach Rick Bowness said of the matchup that "We'll be ready for Tuesday. Tuesday night, it takes a whole other end of the spectrum. The intensity and everything else is going to ramp up. Have a little fun tonight. We got the win, we got 98 points. It's a heck of a year and we move on."
Comments
Post a Comment