Putting the Dallas Stars Playoff Run to Bed
Finals are going on without them, but I wanted to write one last thing about the spring.
June 2, 2024.
It was the day the Stanley Cup dream died again in Dallas.
May 29, 2023 was certainly earlier in the spring and the pain was much more significant as Dallas had their remains scattered all over the ice by the eventual champions from Las Vegas, but June 2 in Edmonton this season was pretty painful, as well.
In fact, May 31, 2024, was what felt like the actual funeral for the Dallas Stars as I sat in my seats with my daughter and watched a fairly lifeless ending to a spring of magical fun. It was her first playoff game in person this spring after watching them the entire way from afar. She was beyond pumped about a Game 5 in Dallas that would not have to be watched on a big screen or tiny phone. This time, she would be in the house to witness it all.
Of course, she wasn’t planning on watching Edmonton boss the entirety of Game 5 like they did. We tried to keep hope alive through the rough performance, believing that they would rise back up, take control again, and ultimately win a home Game 7 and advance to their destiny – a chance at the Stanley Cup Finals.
Why did she believe this? Well, probably because she trusted my judgement. Dad told her that this was a team that could win it all and that this was a team that was better than Edmonton. Those two indicators combined informed many that tied 2-2 after four games with Edmonton is not a bad spot for a team with home-ice advantage and a roster so deep that you cannot touch the bottom of the talent pool.
Well, I was wrong. Dead wrong. Dallas was flying high after the Jason Robertson show in Game 3, but never grabbed hold of the series after that – unless the early 2-0 lead in Game 4 should count, but they didn’t even reach the 1st intermission with that lead, so I don’t count it very seriously – and lost three straight games for the first time in the Pete DeBoer era.
Games 4, 5, and 6 and that is all she wrote.