Game 6 of the Dallas Stars vs Minnesota Wild series had the makings of another one that would go down to the wire. However, a third-period goal by Quinn Hughes helped the Wild overcome the Stars for a 5-2 win in Game 6 of the Western Conference first round series. Hughes scored twice as the Wild advanced out of the first round for the first time since the 2014-15 postseason.
The Wild go onto the second round but the road doesn’t get any easier. Minnesota will have to battle the President’s Trophy-winning Colorado Avalanche. This will be the first time that Minnesota and Colorado will meet in the Stanley Cup Playoffs since the 2013-14 season. The Wild surprised the Avs in what would be in the final games of Patrick Roy‘s career.
Dallas Stars vs Minnesota Wild Series Recap
Coming up Hughes
Minnesota general manager Bill Guerin took a massive gamble by acquiring Hughes from the Vancouver Canucks. Guerin rolled the dice and gave up a king’s ransom in order to land the eventual Olympic gold medalist. Hughes had only scored two goals in 35 games entering this pivotal game.
However, Hughes got the Wild off the mark with a wrist shot goal just six minutes, 23 seconds into the first period. The OT hero against Sweden picked up the secondary assist on the game-tying goal by Vladimir Tarasenko in the second period.
However, Hughes would save his biggest goal for last. His shot ping ponged passed Dallas goalie Jake Oettinger to give the Wild the lead just past the halfway point of the third period. Guerin’s move was a risky one, but it could already be paying off.
Building a Wallstedt
There was some question on who would get the call in goal for the Wild. There were some that thought the veteran Filip Gustvasson would get the call. However, Wild head coach John Hynes gave the nod to Jesper Wallstedt.
The young Swede proved his coach right and was stellar in this series. Wallstedt managed to outduel Oettinger and came up with some spectacular saves to give Minnesota a chance to get over the line. The Wild have a notorious history of getting tripped up at the first hurdle. However, history did not repeat itself this time around.
Wallstedt may have cemented his place as the future in between the pipes for the Wild. It was a gutsy call for Hynes to trust his young netminder, but Wallstedt came up large.
Stars Burning Out
Dallas has been a fixture in the Western Conference Final the last three years. However, there are a lot more questions than answers deep in the heart of Texas. Dallas general manager Jim Nill has put together a consistent winner. However, this team hasn’t gotten over the hurdle.
Youngsters like Wyatt Johnston and Jason Robertson did all they could to keep Dallas alive. However, it wasn’t enough. Nill has to figure out what to do next with his club.
Captain Jamie Benn is an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season. There are also questions on what the future will hold for the injured Tyler Seguin. Nill also has to figure out how to pay Robertson in the coming offseason. It could be possible that Nill tries to make some sort of trade in order to get some sort of return.
Dallas also struggled not having Roope Hintz in the lineup and losing Nils Lundvist did not help their cause. Could dealing Robertson allow the Stars to fill the holes with some veteran depth? The lead-up to July 1 is going to be an interesting one and could see the California native on a new roster.
Main photo by: Nick Wosika– Imagn Images
