Jake Oettinger had the privilege of playing in front of his family and the excitement of supporting the dallas stars to a definitive victory in his native Minnesota.
Ryan Suter had the satisfaction of beating his former team that bought out his contract two years ago.
Dallas Stars goaltender Jake Oettinger, second from right, celebrates with teammates following their 4-1 win over the Minnesota Wild in Game 6 of a hockey Stanley Cup first-round playoff series of the NHL on Friday, April 28, 2023 in St. Paul, Minnesota. The Stars won the series. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
The stars had all sorts of reasons for appreciate this victoryincluding a little extra break.
Roope Hintz got Dallas going early, Oettinger obstructed his home state team again, and the Stars blew out the Wild 4-1 in Game 6 of their first-round NHL playoff series Friday night.
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«I think the guys knew how important it was to both of us,» Suter said, «and they all really stepped up and competed hard for us.»
Wyatt Johnston and Mason Marchment scored in the second period, when an all-star burst, swooping in for the end, outwitted the savage 18-5. Max Domi had an empty net at the last minute.
Minnesota Wild left wing Kirill Kaprizov (97) and goaltender Filip Gustavsson (32) leave the ice after the team’s 4-1 loss to the Dallas Stars in Game 6 of a first-round playoff series of NHL hockey’s Stanley Cup on Friday, April 28, 2023, in St. Paul, Minnesota. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Oettinger made 22 saves for the Stars, who advanced to face the Colorado-Seattle winner. He avalanche rhythm the Kraken on Friday to force Game 7.
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Oettinger was bidding for his second shutout of the series before Freddy Gaudreau scored for the Wild with 7:07 remaining.
«He’s our brick wall back there, and we trust him. Every time we make mistakes, he’s there for us,» Marchment said. «We wouldn’t be here without him.»
Filip Gustavsson, starting for the fourth straight game for the first time in his first season with Minnesota, stopped 23 shots in two quarters.
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Marc-Andre Fleury, who was at the net in a 7-3 loss at Dallas in Game 2, took over in the third.
Dallas Stars center Wyatt Johnston, front, reaches for the puck as Minnesota Wild center Frederick Gaudreau looks on during the first period of Game 6 of a hockey Stanley Cup first round playoff series from the NHL on Friday, April 28, 2023 in St. Paul, Minnesota. . (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
The Wild fell to 5-14 at home in the playoffs since they last advanced, a first round win over St. Louis in 2015. They are 4-13 in franchise history in postseason series.
The Stars lost in seven games in the first round to Calgary last year. With center Joe Pavelski expected to return for the next round after missing the last five games with a concussion, they are in position to take another step toward the Stanley Cup Finals they reached in the 2020 pandemic bubble.