The Dallas Stars completed the first step of a potential comeback from a 3-0 series deficit with a 3-2 win over the Vegas Golden Knights in Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals on Thursday night.
Only four teams have ever completed the series win after falling behind 3-0 in the NHL Playoffs, but that is not deterring Dallas’ efforts as the series continues for at least one more game.
“The guys stepped up and got one to go our way in overtime,” goalie Jake Oettinger told the media after the game. “Three of the four games [going] into overtime shows you how tight these two teams are, and, hopefully, this gives us belief that we can beat these guys.”
Veteran forward Joe Pavelski was part of one of those series, as the San Jose Sharks lost a seven-game series to the Los Angeles Kings in 2014, having nearly done the same against the Detroit Red Wings in the 2011 Western Conference Finals.
“You don’t want to be in those situations, but when you’re on the other side, you understand it can happen,” Pavelski said as he met with the media Thursday night. “It’s happened before…You just have to keep putting your game out there and having the belief that we can buy more time.”
Pavelski delivered the game-winner on the power play 3:18 into overtime to keep the Stars’ championship hopes alive.
“We haven’t had the greatest success in overtime,” Pavelski explained. “It was still a moment where we wanted to attack, and if we had an opportunity, we wanted to go. There was a little bit of pressure there for us, but once that penalty happened, it was a great opportunity to create some more [of] it and get some looks. [It] Probably wasn’t the cleanest power play to start early, but we retrieved a puck or two and found a little space. It was nice to see that one go in.”
That power-play goal could be a series-changer, reinstilling confidence in the locker room as Dallas heads to Las Vegas for Game 5.
“Our backs are against the wall, and sometimes there’s beauty in playing with nothing to lose,” Oettinger said. “We’ve got nothing to lose, so if everyone goes out there and plays as hard as they can, I think we’ll be fine.”
The Western Conference Finals continue with Game 5 from Las Vegas’ T-Mobile Arena at 7 p.m. CT on Saturday.
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