The Edmonton Oilers hammered the Dallas Stars 6-1 in Game 3 of the Western Conference Final on Sunday afternoon, taking a 2-1 series lead with the victory.
That score flatters the home team a little bit and suggests the game was more of a blowout than it actually was. Stuart Skinner was excellent for the Oilers, stopping 33 of 34 shots in the win, while Edmonton tagged Jake Oettinger for six goals on 24 shots.
The .750 save percentage was by far the worst Oettinger has posted over 16 starts in the playoffs. He came into this series with a .919 save percentage through the first two rounds and has a .842 save percentage in three games against the Oilers.
Despite the results so far, the Stars are confident that their young starting goalie can rebound in the latter part of the series. Head coach Pete DeBoer said following Game 3 on Sunday that Oettinger is one of the best goalies in the league at bouncing back after a rough outing.
“Listen, we wouldn’t be sitting here in the Conference Finals without Jake Oettinger and how he’s played,” DeBoer said when asked about his goalie’s performance. “[Game 3] was one of those games where they were opportunistic. Once they got the lead, we’re pushing to get back in, and there’s grade-As going the other way.“One thing I know about Jake Oettinger, he’s one of the best response goalies in the league. I know he’s not going to drag around [Sunday’s] game.”
There are examples from earlier in the playoffs to support his case. After the Stars fell 5-1 in Game 1 against the Colorado Avalanche in the first round, Oettinger stopped 61 of 65 shots in back-to-back overtime victories in Games 2 and 3. Dallas lost 4-0 in Game 5 against the Winnipeg Jets in the second round, then Oettinger made 22 saves in a series-clinching overtime win in Game 6.
The Stars need Oettinger to bounce back in Game 4 on Tuesday, otherwise, they might be headed back to Dallas just one loss away from elimination. It took Edmonton six games to beat the Stars last spring, and the Oilers would surely love to make it quicker this time around.
Another challenge for the Stars is the injury to Roope Hintz, who left Game 2 after being slashed by Darnell Nurse. Hintz took to the ice for warmups ahead of Game 3 but wasn’t able to play.
“We’re without our No. 1 center,” DeBoer said following the loss in Edmonton on Sunday. “We’re on the road here in a tough environment. I thought we played really good hockey for a big stretch of that game, so there’s nothing to get emotional or upset about.“I think you have to be realistic with your group. I liked our compete [in Game 3]. I liked a lot of parts of our game. We’ve got to build on that, and hopefully get Roope Hintz back and get back in the series.”
Jason Robertson was moved to the Stars’ top line alongside Mikael Granlund and Mikko Rantanen in Hintz’s absence, with Granlund shifting from the wing to centre. The line clicked late in the second period, as Jason Robertson scored his first goal of the playoffs. They were also on the ice for two goals against in the loss.
If Hintz isn’t available, the Stars are going to need other forwards to step up. Rantanen doesn’t have a goal yet in this series after scoring nine goals in the first two rounds. Captain Jamie Benn has only one goal so far in the playoffs. Wyatt Johnston scored ten goals in last year’s playoffs for the Stars and only has four goals in 16 playoff games this year, along with a minus-17 rating.
Even if Oettinger bounces back and has the game of his life in Game 4, the Stars likely aren’t going to beat the Oilers if they can only score once.
