(2024 Playoffs, Round 2) Game 2 Stray Observations: Dallas beats Colorado 5-3
And we're tied.
The story going into Thursday night was simple: keep it tight. Dallas is facing maybe the most dangerous team in the playoffs (again, respecting the distinction between dangerous and best), and I think the blown lead masks the real story of the game: namely that Colorado was the better team that night. Their best players were their best players. To reassure fans, Dallas needed to show they could either a) dominate right back b) contain Colorado’s attack in a sustainable way or c) win the track meet the Avs desire.
Dallas went with a little bit of everything. Tactically, it was Dallas at their best. They weren’t flustered by Colorado’s forecheck, and against the Avs’ mobile defense, they got a heavy cycle going, catching various Colorado defenders on extended shifts.
It’s taken a minute for Logan Stankoven’s synergy with Roope Hintz and Jason Robertson to crystallize, and while they’re not quite there yet, the top line is at least playing the role of top line at long last. However, it’s the blueline that continues to keep Dallas afloat, and in control. Chris Tanev and Esa Lindell might as well be two extra goalies.
There’s another layer to Dallas’ to the narrative, which is Dallas’ ability to draw penalties; a pattern that largely escaped them throughout the regular season. While we know the whistles will eventually get put away, it’s critical that Dallas score on the early opportunities.
A lot will be made about the “almost” blown lead, and while it makes for an easy narrative given what happened in Game 1, I think the broader point was also the most important one: the better team won.
And with that, on to the strays!
Roope Hintz, back?
I’m not ready to call it a comeback, but it was good to see Hintz get back in the boxscore with a blistering pass to Miro Heiskanen to set up the first goal, and then buried the second off a brilliant pass by Nils Lundkvist (!). He’s got a long way to go, but he is a player that I’d expect to excel against a team that lives by the quickness sword, and dies by the quickness sword.
Jake Oettinger: elite
There was no player more dialed in on Thursday than Oettinger. Sure, he let in a couple of goals in the third, but he was better than Georgiev, who himself was having an excellent game despite Dallas’ gaudy goal totals early. As I’ve said before. Oettinger doesn’t need to be perfect. He doesn’t need to be Calgary Oettinger, even if that’d be nice. He just needs to be better, and on Thursday, he was better than his opponent in net.
A digression: Jamie Benn’s hit
I didn’t like it. I have a hard time believing Stars fans would have liked the same hit had it been on Heiskanen, and then defended it by going over the minutiae of what constitutes an initial point of contact. “Oh you’re soft.” I’m gonna assume a good faith discussion here and skip bullshit reactions like this. I condoned what happened the other night between David Pastrnak and Matthew Tkachuk. Why? Because the rules of engagement were clear. Both consented to dropping the gloves, and away they went.
When it comes to hits to the head, there are no rules of engagement because the NHL isn’t interested in defining them. So I prefer that referees err on the side of caution. I don’t think it should have been a major, but a hit to the head — incidental or not — should prioritize player safety. That should be the overarching philosophy. Otherwise, crap like this gets normalized.
That Nils Lundkvist pass
There’s no use going back to the usual discussion about whether Lundkvist deserves to play or not. But that was such a slick pass by Lundkvist. It’s so bizarre that his passing ability shows up in the offensive zone, but not the other two; it’s the reason Pete DeBoer can’t be bothered to trust him. Right or wrong, he’s not a traditional puck mover, nor does he have a puck mover’s typical talents. I do think he’s something kind of unique — a play finisher. He has a talent for landing that KO punch in the offensive zone. It’s easy to see where his game could thrive, but it won’t be in Dallas.
The Colorado perspective
The Avalanche got decked on Thursday. Dallas had answers for their big guns, and while they made a very threatening rally late in the third, the series is now even. Without that rally, you’re probably feeling a lot more anxious.
But here’s the thing: Colorado is really good at home. It’s also hard to imagine that for all of Tanev and Lindell’s ability to shut down some of their stars, that they can do over a full series. MacKinnon will get his breaks, and Nichushkin (what a player) will keep rolling. You probably don’t like seeing Hintz show out, but you’re also probably thinking: stay out of the box, and things will sort themselves out. The Avs seem to live or die by momentum, and that’s what they’ll try to regain on Saturday.
The damage to Toews was done by him incidentally hitting Johnston after he took the hit from Benn. The Benn hit in and of itself was clean, IMO. He wasn't aiming for his head, his head was just low. Keep your head up, they say.
Nils has redeemed himself in this game, if for a day. And not for the pass to Hintz, though that was brilliant. It was for his stick play, awareness, and ability to read movement in his zone. He played like a defenseman, which is notable.
And I feel like the player who has flown under the radar this playoffs is Suter. The guy is just consistent. And that's what I's appreciates abouts hims.
Paul Karya needs to be made Head of Player Safety . In addition the NHL needs to hiave a physician as a consultant who is an expert on concussions be. Paul’s advisor