*** 2021-22 Playoffs Opening Round: Dallas Stars (WC1) at Calgary Flames (P1) - (CGY WINS 4-3) ***

[thegx.ca]

Well that was depressing...for Calgary that is...yeesh...

[Brewin Flames]

Pavelski scores 2 as Stars take 2-1 series lead over Flames

 

Roope Hintz gets the empty-net goal just before time expires as the Stars take Game 3 from the Calgary Flames.

---

ByAP

5 hours ago

 

DALLAS -- — The old goal scorer and the young goalie have put the underdog Dallas Stars out front in their first-round playoff series against the Calgary Flames.

 

Joe Pavelski scored twice and got the game-winner on the first power-play goal in the series for Dallas, and Jake Oettinger had 39 saves as the wild-card Stars won 4-2 on Saturday night to take a 2-1 series lead over the Pacific Division champs who have three 40-goal scorers.

 

Two nights after making 29 saves in a 2-0 win at Calgary that evened the series, the 23-year-old Oettinger got his second playoff victory in his first playoff game on home ice — and the first for the Stars in more than three years. That included a tremendous stop on a breakaway chance by Johnny Gaudreau with 3 1/2 minutes left.

 

“That’s one big timely save,” coach Rick Bowness said. “Jake's doing fantastic. He just rock solid back there, not intimidated by the surroundings and the noise."

 

The Stars were 0 for 10 with an extra skater in the series, though one of those power plays had been for only 4 seconds earlier in Game 3, before the 37-year-old Pavelski's tiebreaking goal with 9:55 left made it 3-2.

 

Pavelski had made a cross-ice pass on a rush to Vladislav Namestnikov, who then took a shot that bounced of of goalie Jacob Markstrom. The puck was knocked in by Pavelski, whose 64 career postseason goals are the most by an American-born skater.

 

“It’s big. It’s another step,” Pavelski, who also had the game-winner in Game 2, said of taking a 2-1 series lead. “There’s a lot of effort from up and down the lineup. Lots of physicality. Guys handing in, taking checks, making plays.”

 

Like Oettinger, it was the first home playoff game at the American Airlines Center for Pavelski. His first season with the Stars in 2019-20 ended with them making it to the Stanley Cup Final when the entire postseason was played in a bubble in Canada because of the pandemic.

 

Game 4 is Monday night in Dallas, before the series shifts back to Calgary for Game 5 on Wednesday.

 

“Our group still feels really good. Really confident in our entire ability,” said Calgary veteran center Blake Coleman, who played his first playoff game in Dallas, about a half-hour from where he grew up in Plano, Texas. “We win one game and we have home ice back. That was our goal here. There’s no panic in our room.”

 

Radek Faksa scored the first goal for Dallas, and Roope Hintz added an empty-net tally just before the final horn. Miro Heiskanen had two assists for the Stars, who also finished with a 44-23 advantage in hits.

 

Elias Lindholm and Trevor Lewis had goals for Calgary.

 

After the teams traded shutouts and combined for only three goals in the two games at Calgary, they had another physical and brawling game. Matthew Tkachuk and John Klingberg fought only 1:22 into the game, trading blows and getting 5-minute majors as Oettinger made a glove save of Gaudreau’s wrister on Calgary’s first shot.

 

Pavelski’s first goal of the game tied it at 2 about midway through the second period, when he knocked in Heiskanen’s shot that ricocheted off Markstrom. That came only seconds after Markstrom’s off-balance rejection of a shot by Heiskanen, though the Stars were able to keep the possession alive.

Markstrom stopped 28 shots.

 

Faksa put the Stars up 1-0 about 8 1/2 minutes into the game when he used his stick to redirect Esa Lindell’s shot on a pass from Heiskanen right after a faceoff.

 

Just before that, Faksa was leveled in front of the net by Noah Hanifan before Markstrom was able to control the puck after a shot by Heiskanen.

Calgary got even at 1-1 on a goal that Bowness thought came because of goalie interference, with Oettinger laid on his side after contact with Milan Lucic. Dallas lost the replay challenge.

 

It appeared that Lucic, who was engaged with Tyler Seguin, tried to avoid the Dallas goalie. The contact happened just outside the crease and Lucic was able to push the puck back front, where it was knocked in by Lewis.

 

The Flames took a 2-1 lead when Lindholm scored from just inside the circle early in the second period.

 

“Hard fought. Close games,” Calgary coach Darryl Sutter said. “You’ve got to play the whole game. We knew they were going to come out.”

[thegx.ca]

YOU SUTTER BOYS BETTER BRING BACK A WIN OUTTA DALLAS IF YOU KNOW WHAT GOOD FOR YA

[Math]

Even if Öttinger made some key saves in the third, we can't really conclude he stole the game on that one. That was a little bit open, high scoring chances on both sides and definitely the best game of the series, in terms of entertainment I'd say.  Gaudreau apparenty got Benn's invisible disease and Tkatchuk is still more concentrated in fighting Klingberg than actually play.

 

I'm expecting Calgary to get their flamethrowers out and put the Stars under siege early in the game #4. 

[TropicalFruitGirl26]

I am seriously crushing on young Jake Öttinger.
Of course, I'd need to be careful now cause I am old enough to be his mom (yikes!) 

Seriously though...he has been fantastic.
Bishop who? Khodobin who?? Holtby WHO???

Jake Umlaut Öttinger is the only name Dallas fans need to know when asked who is in net for them!

Thus far, 112 of 115 shots stopped in the series, according to the TBS announcers.
Insane!

[Math]

As expected, the Flames were in all attack mode in the first, with the Stars going with the usual "bend-don't-brake" and Öttinger saving the house again. His save against Toffoli will be a top-3 in this 2022 playoffs.

 

In his first five postseason games, he's second in NHL history with .971, just behind Bryz.

[TropicalFruitGirl26]

Oh my...

Dallas with wide open looks on that PP, not converting.
Given what the scores have been in this series so far, could come back and bite them in the North Star....

[Math]

39 shots on goals by the Flames after 40', it would be great if the Stars show just a bit of offense. With Pavelski closely watched, I'm still confident that Benn Seguin Radulov Hintz Robertson Gurianov Faksa Glendening... oh well, nevermind...

[TropicalFruitGirl26]

24 minutes ago, Math said:

39 shots on goals by the Flames after 40', it would be great if the Stars show just a bit of offense. With Pavelski closely watched, I'm still confident that Benn Seguin Radulov Hintz Robertson Gurianov Faksa Glendening... oh well, nevermind...

 

Amazing, isn't it?
The players on that roster...and scoring goals is a FREAKIN PROBLEM!

[thegx.ca]

1 hour ago, TropicalFruitGirl26 said:

 

Amazing, isn't it?
The players on that roster...and scoring goals is a FREAKIN PROBLEM!

Just against this Ottinger guy

[thegx.ca]

I like how Lucic went a took opening faceoff against Benn and challenged him to fight that really gave Dallas notice not to talk about fighting Tkachuk to the media again...bottom line is just like Nashville if Dallas wants to fight Calgary they just gonna get beat up so it really up to them...anyways I think it really say the tone for Calgary dominating the entire game tonight...

[Brewin Flames]

Flames get even in series with 4-1 win over Stars in Game 4

 

 

0:44

 

 

Jake Oettinger makes filthy glove save

Jake Oettinger makes a filthy glove save to prevent a Flames goal.

---

ByAP

Updated: 4 hours ago

 

DALLAS -- — Rasmus Andersson, Johnny Gaudreau and the Calgary Flames felt much more like themselves, and got even in their first-round playoff series with an onslaught of shots.

 

It helped that they also got to play a lot of 5-on-5 hockey, though Andersson did score Calgary's first power-play goal since early in the playoff opener, as the Flames beat the Dallas Stars 4-1 in Game 4 on Monday night.

 

“We had a lot of long shifts in their zone and overall a good game, a good 60 minutes,” said Andersson, who had only two of Calgary's 54 shots. “We didn’t take too many penalties tonight too, so we get to play 5 on 5, and that’s that’s what we were, a really good team.”

 

Gaudreau converted a penalty shot with 12:13 left in the game to make it 2-0 Calgary, and later assisted on Elias Lindholm's third goal of the series as the Pacific Division champions regained home-ice advantage over the wild-card Stars. Mikael Backlund added an empty-netter in the final minute.

 

It was the first goal of the series for Gaudreau, who in Game 3 was rejected by Jake Oettinger on a late breakaway that would have tied that game.

 

The Flames forward, a 100-point scorer, was on another breakaway Monday night when John Klingberg was penalized for hooking. Gaudreau made a nifty move on the penalty shot to push the puck through the legs of Jake Oettinger, the 23-year-old goalie who had 50 saves.

 

“I feel like since Game 1 I've been playing well, playing hard against this team," Gaudreau said. “Last game had a breakaway .... tonight a little different story, found the net. That's the way hockey is"

 

Game 5 is Wednesday night in Calgary, where the teams traded shutouts in the first two games while combining for only three total goals — one of those an empty-netter at the end of the Stars’ 2-0 win in Game 2.

 

The series returns to Dallas on Friday night for the sixth game in the best-of-seven series.

 

“We were off a little bit, and when we’re off a little bit against a top-tier team like that, a big favorite in this league ... they’re going to make you pay, and they made us pay tonight,” said Tyler Seguin, who had a late power-play goal for the Stars.

 

That was the only shot to get past Jacob Markstrom, who had 34 saves.

 

The Flames were just more than a minute into a 5-on-3 opportunity midway through the second period when Andersson traded passes with Matthew Tkachuk before his shot from the top of the slot made it 1-0.

 

“It was a solid game for us," Calgary coach Daryl Sutter said. “The strength of our team is 5 on 5. Our special teams function from what we do 5 on 5.”

 

Calgary had failed to convert on 13 consecutive power-play attempts before that, including two earlier in the game, since scoring five seconds into their first power play of the series. That was five minutes into Game 1, and the only goal in that 1-0 win.

 

Before Calgary had a two-man advantage, that power play opened on a split save by Oettinger, who had his right leg fully extended against the post when he pushed away a shot by Andersson.

 

The Stars have also struggled on the power play, going 0 for 4 with a man advantage in Game 4 before Seguin scored with 4:57 left to get the Stars within 3-1.

 

Both teams are 2 for 17 on power plays in the series.

 

“As badly as we played, there was times that we had a chance to give us some momentum, and we didn’t, we didn't capitalize,” Stars coach Rick Bowness said.

 

Oettinger has faced plenty of shots in his first four NHL playoff starts. He had 25 saves in the opener, 29 in his shutout win and then 39 more in Game 3.

 

 

Midway through the first period Monday, after being peppered with a sequence of shots and unable to secure a loose puck, Oettinger made a impressive save when he reached back while falling down to snag the puck with his glove to deny Tyler Toffoli.

 

That was only a couple of minutes after Stars defenseman Miro Heiskanen hit the crossbar with a shot.

 

"Thought we started well, thought our first period was good," Andersson said. “We stuck with it. We got a big power play good there, and then obviously got the second one and the third one. So overall, it was a good game and you know, it all started with a good start in the first.”

[Math]

Ok, I was expecting the Flames to come out very strong and put the Stars under a storm of nuke and fire. But I haven't thought the Flames could handle that rhythm during the whole game and maintain that level of heat. Goddamn climate warming, I guess...

 

 A win totally derserved, Öttinger can't do all by himself and be God all the time. And as a defense-first minded team, getting 54 freakin' SOG is quite embarrassing. The game was fun, they were A+ opportunities on both sides but the Stars just don't have any offense at all. Pavelski was checked 24/7, the top line was off, the other line didn't show anything -- business as usual --, and Klingberg was awful. 

 

I evaluated that Öttinger should play above .940 to give his team a chance to win. With his .943 last night, the threshold should be even higher. And that's the problem: it's just impossible to ask your goalie to play at that level every night if you want to win in this system. That's a bit sad but Benn and Seguin are totally and definitely washed-up. 

 

7 hours ago, Villella McMeans said:

I like how Lucic went a took opening faceoff against Benn and challenged him to fight that really gave Dallas notice not to talk about fighting Tkachuk to the media again

 

Still my hidden card. He's a bit overpaid, often considered overrated but so important in the playoffs and in these typical situations that can flip the game. 

[Math]

On 5/7/2022 at 10:23 PM, Jimtown guy said:

A buddy of mine sent it to me 

 

I got additional informations from my... boss (!). Her name is Natalie Gauvreau, she's originally from Toronto and owns this subjective twitter account: @SexyNatG

 

Bottom line: Photoshop can do miracles.

[Buffalo Rick]

The real Flames finally showed up and I am expecting them to come out flying vs Dallas in this next game and put the Stars in the hole.  Calgary is by far the better team.  Time to put the Stars on the brink

[thegx.ca]

2 hours ago, Hockey Junkie said:

The real Flames finally showed up and I am expecting them to come out flying vs Dallas in this next game and put the Stars in the hole.  Calgary is by far the better team.  Time to put the Stars on the brink

Fck yeah...Calgary at home with Lucic telling Benn and rest of Dallas to leave Tkachuk alone again I'm totally expecting Calgary to have a repeat game of Monday GOGOGO FLAMES GOGOGO

[Buffalo Rick]

1 hour ago, Villella McMeans said:

Fck yeah...Calgary at home with Lucic telling Benn and rest of Dallas to leave Tkachuk alone again I'm totally expecting Calgary to have a repeat game of Monday GOGOGO FLAMES GOGOGO

I agree.  Hoping the Flames take this trash out

[Math]

I'm curious to see the level of intensity of the Flames for game #5. They put everything on the ice last game, totally outplaying the Stars like if it they were on the verge of elimination. The first minutes will tell a lot.

 

Like Tkatchuk, Benn should concentrate on playing hockey rather than going with this trash talk BS. Zero points so far in this series, I don't mind going with the fight thing but it's more legitimate to do it if you perform. Otherwise we just have a $10m Brendan Lemieux. Yeah, every team has some toxic contracts.

[Math]

I'm absolutely delighted that Bowness finally decides to split up the line that's responsible for half of the Stars' goal, both in regular season and in the playoffs, for game #5. That's the spark so desperately needed to put back this fantastic offense in business. 

[Toronto Jules]

I predicted the Calgary Flames to make it to the Stanley Cup finals and even though I thought this series was going to be a tough one for them, I think they will take down Dallas in 7 games. 

[Toronto Jules]

1 minute ago, FireDillabaugh said:

I predicted this one being the only sweep in these playoffs with Calgary in 4.  I thought even the Preds would at least win 1 game, and play better than they did.  Shows how little I know...  It's why I don't bet on hockey.

 

But, seeing how Calgary has played so far, not sure they can take down Colorado.  Especially if they get Kuemper back.  Markstrom has played great.  But, there's a lot of offense on that roster that hasn't shown up like they should in this round.

It is hard to take the offensive team of Colorado. I just feel the Stanley Cup Playoffs are a bizarre little tournament that never goes to plan. Everyone knows what Colorado do and the same can be said for the Panthers, but they could be out in the first round to Washington. 

 

The Stanley Cup playoffs are a totally different set then the regular season so that is why I always mix it up a little bit. 

 

I also being a Canadian want to have two teams from Canada in the Stanley Cup Finals. Toronto beating the Flames in 7. 

[OccamsRazor]

1 hour ago, Toronto Jules said:

It is hard

 

Poor Rick how is he suppose to concentrate with this type of distraction...

 

 

A secret Flames fan running interference?

 

 

 

 

 

Edited May 11, 2022 by OccamsRazor

[Toronto Jules]

Also the Flames play a physical type game which if it does come down to them playing against the Avalanche that could give them some trouble. 

[thegx.ca]

11 hours ago, FireDillabaugh said:

I predicted this one being the only sweep in these playoffs with Calgary in 4.  I thought even the Preds would at least win 1 game, and play better than they did.  Shows how little I know...  It's why I don't bet on hockey.

 

But, seeing how Calgary has played so far, not sure they can take down Colorado.  Especially if they get Kuemper back.  Markstrom has played great.  But, there's a lot of offense on that roster that hasn't shown up like they should in this round.

Haha don't worry man I though Calgary should sweep them too or at least win in 5, but I did pick Colorado to sweep though...I'm not worried about Colorado though for Calgary because their defence shouldn't be an rough as Dallas.

[thegx.ca]

11 hours ago, Toronto Jules said:

It is hard to take the offensive team of Colorado. I just feel the Stanley Cup Playoffs are a bizarre little tournament that never goes to plan. Everyone knows what Colorado do and the same can be said for the Panthers, but they could be out in the first round to Washington. 

 

The Stanley Cup playoffs are a totally different set then the regular season so that is why I always mix it up a little bit. 

 

I also being a Canadian want to have two teams from Canada in the Stanley Cup Finals. Toronto beating the Flames in 7. 

I'm wanting Calgary beating Toronto in 7 for the Cup haha