On Friday, the Stars and Golden Knights started competing for a position in the Stanley Cup Final.
The Eastern Conference Final began on Thursday night with the Florida Panthers defeating the Carolina Hurricanes in a thrilling four-overtime contest; the Western Conference Final began on Friday night with yet another overtime game between the Vegas Golden Knights and Dallas Stars. For the third time in these playoffs, Dallas was defeated in overtime to open a series, as Brett Howden’s goal gave Vegas the advantage on its home ice just one minute and 35 seconds into the extra session.
Near the end of the first period, Jason Robertson’s tip-in off Roope Hintz’s assist gave the Stars the lead. William Karlsson’s wrist shot for the Knights knotted the score at 9:17 in the second period. Karlsson then gave Vegas the lead at 1:19 in the third period, but a snap shot by Dallas’ Hintz tied it up, setting up Howden’s miraculous comeback in overtime.
After a successful regular season that won them the top seed in the Western Conference, the Golden Knights eliminated the Winnipeg Jets in the first round in just five games. In the second round matchup with Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers, Vegas was able to contain one of the league’s most potent offenses at five-on-five, winning the series in six games.
In his first postseason outing, Jack Eichel has exceeded all expectations. In terms of goals (6), assists (8), and points (14), he is the Golden Knights’ leader. A successful series against a stout Stars defense will move Eichel, a front-runner for the Conn Smythe Trophy, one step closer to winning.
The Stars fell behind 2-1 in their first round series against the Minnesota Wild before seizing control and winning the final three games. The Seattle Kraken gave Dallas all it could handle in the last round, extending the series to seven games. The Kraken gained some life because to a pair of weak performances from Jake Oettinger, but the Stars totally dominated the pivotal Game 7.
Roope Hintz has distinguished himself as one of the top young players in the league throughout this playoff run. With 19 points, he is second among all postseason scorers, one point behind the now-eliminated Connor McDavid. Joe Pavelski, who is 38 years old and has eight goals in eight games, is standing next to Hintz. Last time around, that team was Seattle’s worst nightmare.
Here is how to stay up to date with the Western Conference Final’s schedule and outcomes. *if necessary
Game 1: Golden Knights 4, Stars 3 (OT)
In Game 1 of the Western Conference Final, the Golden Knights took care of business, defeating the visiting Stars 4-3 in overtime behind a two-goal performance from William Karlsson and the game-winning goal from Brett Howden.
Just over a minute remained in the first period when Jason Robertson gave Dallas the lead with a goal, but after that it was all Vegas. After Dallas’ Roope Hintz tied the score at 4:01 of the third period with his goal, Karlsson scored the game’s next two goals to give Vegas its first advantage. Teddy Blueger then put Vegas back in front with a goal of his own at the 9:20 mark.
But just as it appeared that Dallas was out of time, Jamie Benn tied the game with less than two minutes left in regulation to force overtime. However, overtime went very quickly as Howden scored the game-winning goal at 1:35 of the extra time by banking the puck off Stars goalie Jake Oettinger. In postseason games that have gone into overtime, the Golden Knights are now 2-0, while the Stars are 0-3.
ONLY NEEDED 1:35 OF OVERTIME IN THIS ONE.
Brett Howden tucks one home and the @GoldenKnights take Game 1! #StanleyCup pic.twitter.com/HKnd45xjY1
— NHL (@NHL) May 20, 2023
After leading the Golden Knights for the previous three seasons, Pete DeBoer was sacked, and Vegas’ triumph prevented him from leading the Stars again. As the series will continue in Vegas, DeBoer will look to redeem himself in Game 2.
Game 2
- Date: Sunday, May 21 | Time: 3:00 p.m. ET
- Location: T-Mobile Arena — Las Vegas, Nevada
- TV: ABC | Live stream: fuboTV (try for free)
Game 3
- Date: Tuesday, May 23 | Time: 8:00 p.m. ET
- Location: American Airlines Center — Dallas, Texas
- TV: ESPN | Live stream: fuboTV (try for free)
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Game 4
- Date: Thursday, May 25 | Time: 8:00 p.m. ET
- Location: American Airlines Center — Dallas, Texas
- TV: ESPN | Live stream: fuboTV (try for free)
*Game 5
- Date: Saturday, May 27 | Time: 8:00 p.m. ET
- Location: T-Mobile Arena — Las Vegas, Nevada
- TV: ABC | Live stream: fuboTV (try for free)
*Game 6
- Date: Monday, May 29 | Time: 8:00 p.m. ET
- Location: American Airlines Center — Dallas, Texas
- TV: ESPN | Live stream: fuboTV (try for free)
*Game 7
- Date: Wednesday, May 31 | Time: 9:00 p.m. ET
- Location: T-Mobile Arena — Las Vegas, Nevada
- TV: ESPN | Live stream: fuboTV (try for free)
