Game 6 Double-OT Win Launches Jubilant Dallas Stars to West Finals

Game 6’s double-overtime celebration was THE moment that every hockey player fights through the grind of the 82-game regular season to reach.  Dallas fans hope there are still a pair of other joy-filled celebrations on the horizon for the Stars over the next few weeks. But amidst the cast-aside hockey gear and “headbutts of love” shared amongst teammates on Friday night, Dallas stood victorious in the handshake line after Game 6.

The win returns the Dallas Stars to the Western Conference Finals, where they lost to the Las Vegas Golden Knights last season. For Dallas, it will be the third time to the WCF since 2020.  

Dallas Overtime Goalie Controversy…… Again?!

What is a Dallas Stars’ Game 6 Stanley Cup Playoffs victory without some good ‘ole goalie controversy?

Let’s hop in our time machine and go back before the start of the 2000s. The year is 1999. Fans are sitting on an outdated couch, drinking Mountain Dew with Cheeto dust on their fingers. Ok. Maybe that was me. Shoosh, please. 

The Dallas Stars claim their first Stanley Cup in of Game 6 against Buffalo in triple OT. NHL Hall-of-Famer Brett Hull’s controversial Cup-clinching OT goal has been dissected more than a trending TikTok video by fans trying to determine if his skate was in the painted ice or not.  Either way, the Stars hoisted their first Stanley Cup trophy cementing their franchise in the history of the National Hockey League. 

Dallas scored in the first overtime period to end the Avalanche’s playoff dreams of 2024’s edition of Game 6. However, the officials came to another conclusion, this time about the Stars’ OT goal.

Dallas scored after a faceoff win at 7:30 of the first OT frame. The goal was waived off by officials for goaltender interference by Dallas. On replay, it appeared Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar pushed the Stars’s Matt Duchene into the Avalanche goalie. Since the call on the ice was no goal, and there was no “undisputable video evidence to overturn the call,” the overtime tally was disallowed. 

Play resumed still tied at one heading into a second overtime session in Denver for Game 6.   

Duchene Wins It For Dallas in Double OT in Game 6

As one would imagine, Matt Duchene was not a fan of the official’s call to overturn the Dallas goal in the first overtime period. An hour later, the Stars’ forward left no doubt stuffing the game-winner into the net.  At 11:42 of the second overtime, Duchene buried a rebound past Alexandar Georgiev into a wide-open cage, thus kick-starting the gear-flying Dallas hug fest in front of some very disappointed Colorado supporters at Ball Arena.

This is not the first time Duchene has shown the clutch gene for his team. The double-overtime tally represented the 4th Stanley Cup Playoff overtime game-winner. Some hockey legends, like Mario Lemieux & Mark Messier, never scored that exhilarating, game-ending overtime goal in the postseason. 

With the win, Dallas awaits the winner of the Edmonton Oilers-Vancouver Canucks playoff series. Edmonton currently owns a 3-games-to-2 series advantage in that matchup.

Colorado Avalanche Offseason Plans? 

It will be a bitter pill for the Colorado Avalanche to swallow this offseason. The roster construction was solid, and the trade deadline acquisitions seemed to check the right boxes. Colorado was tested for adversity and injury issues in the playoffs. It all simply became too much for MacKinnon and Makar to handle on their own before falling in Game 6.

Several Colorado Avalanche players likely will not return to Denver next season. Trade-deadline acquisitions forward Brandon Duhaime & Yakov Trenin and defenseman Sean Walker could also be searching for new homes. Colorado should make the contract of center Casey Middlestadt a priority checklist item this offseason. Middlestadt was one of the few depth pieces that found scoring success for the Avs in these playoffs. 

Gabriel Landeskog could return after missing two seasons with a lower-body injury. He was skating with the team towards the end of the playoff series with Dallas but did not play in the series.  The Colorado captain would be a $7-million cap hit to the Avalanche if he does play next year, but he would represent a massive upgrade to the Avalanche’s top six once he reaches full strength.