Stars brimming with confidence heading into Game 4 vs. Oilers – Sportsnet.ca

EDMONTON — Those who don’t have the stomach to watch a cat toy with a mouse, perhaps watching the Dallas Stars play the Edmonton Oilers would provide a sufficient example of the patience and periods of dominance involved.

For the second game in a row, the Stars watched the nimble Oilers scamper around Dallas goaltender Jake Oettinger, scoring twice and threatening often as the crowd roared its approval of a 10-3 shot differential that underlined the visitors’ inability to get off their heels.

If you hadn’t seen any other games in the series, you might have assumed Game 3 was essentially over.

Alas, after a 15-minute break, the Stars got their claws out.

Three Stars goals in under four minutes flipped the game, and the narrative, on its head, as the crowd was silenced by seeing 14 consecutive shots thrown Stuart Skinner’s way.

That stretch included a span so dominant, the Oilers went 16:27 without a shot on goal as the Stars swatted them around.

It was eerily similar to Game 2, when the Stars’ slow start was followed up by a stretch that saw the Oilers go 12:14 without a shot late in the first and into the second, before going 11:43 without a shot in the third.

Catch and release, as the reeling hosts struggled to find ways to keep hopes of a third-period resurgence alive.

“We took our foot off the pedal,” Edmonton coach Kris Knoblauch said after Game 3.

No, the Stars grabbed the wheel, climbed out of an early hole and raced across the finish line with a 5-3 win that put them up 2-1 in the Western Conference Final.

They did it with an unflappable blend of resilience and defiance that comes with having the deepest team in the league — a roster so full of defensive stalwarts and offensive threats, you can’t help but wonder who will stop them.

None of that is to mention the backbone of it all, Jake Oettinger, whose stinginess in the first period of both recent games (the Stars were outshot a combined 27-9 in the first periods) held the fort long enough to make both wins possible.

“It was pretty quiet in here, nobody was panicking, we were ready to respond, and we did,” explained Stars forward Tyler Seguin of Monday’s intermission turnabout.

“I think it just came down to races and battles.”

Those are the two words emblazoned on the back of their playoff T-shirts, reminding them of a simple focus on providing a baseline competitive level that should allow their depth to win out over the long haul.

“I think a lot of it is the experience we have,” said second-year sensation Wyatt Johnston, whose eighth goal of the playoffs silenced Rogers Place with a go-ahead goal midway through Game 3.

“Guys who have played in so many playoff games and seen it all. We have that confidence. If they’re buzzing, you want to weather the storm and get out of it as quickly as we can. But there’s that patience in our game. We can find our game at any point in the game and just get back to it.”

Taking their cues from a calm, proven coach such as Pete DeBoer, the Stars never seem fazed by the moment, responding to everything by continually rolling four lines over the boards while their blue-liners keep opponents to the outside, blocking an inordinate amount of rubber nightly.

There’s a calmness and defensive structure that’s been in place since Ken Hitchcock ran the team in the mid-90s.

Add to that a swagger this careful blend of proven veterans and capable youngsters earned during a season that saw them finish one point behind the Rangers for tops in the standings.

“Obviously, we know we’re here for a reason, we know we’re a great hockey team,” said Monday’s scoring hero, Jason Robertson, when asked how his team is able to flick a switch on a game so easily.

“Everyone does their job and trusts the system to be successful. I think that’s the great thing about our team, no one steps out of it. No one tries to do too much by forcing plays, trying to cheat the game, even when you’re down by a couple goals.

“Guys stick with it and it’s contagious, when one line is going, the other lines are going, and it’s building.”

Unlike 2020, when the Stars lost in the final due to a shortage of offence, this team is full of the type of scoring threats that make it easier to believe that with patience and discipline, no deficit is insurmountable.

Especially with top-line centre Roope Hintz back in the lineup.

Following a four-game absence, his return Monday was chiefly responsible for Robertson’s ability to stop a 10-game scoreless streak with a hattie, no less.

It added even more confidence to a room brimming with it.

“We’re a better team than we were last year in the Western Conference Final,” said DeBoer.

“We’re a deeper team, and that’s (GM) Jim Nill going out in the summer and signing depth, and going into the trade deadline and adding guys.

“I felt last year in the Western Conference finals, when we got to this point, we were kind of hoping that everything lined up and we could win.

“I feel like this year we feel like we should win.”