Dallas Stars vs Vegas Golden Knights First-Round Series Review

The hard-fought Dallas Stars vs Vegas Golden Knights series is over. Dallas emerged with a 2-1 victory in Game 7 over defending Stanley Cup champion Vegas. The Stars vs Golden Knights series was a tight one with no game decided by more than two goals. It was a series that could have been played later on in the 2024 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs. However, the Stars are moving on to play the Colorado Avalanche.

Let’s take a look at the key points of the Stars vs Golden Knights series.

Stars vs Golden Knights Series Review

The Wyatt Family

Dallas dropped the first two games of the series and some thought Vegas would at least get one game at T-Mobile Arena. However, Wyatt Johnston was there to help tie the series. His overtime-winner in Game 3 got the Stars back into the series. From there, the 20-year-old forward helped infuse life into the Dallas attack.

Johnston scored again in Game 4 and dished out a pair of assists in Game 5 to give the Stars the series lead. The Toronto native then opened the scoring in Game 7 and was a consistent force for the back-half of the series.

Dallas has a promising group of young players like Jason Robertson, Logan Stankoven, and Thomas Harley. However, Johnston stole the spotlight with his great play in this series.

Just the Faksa, Ma’am

The younger Stars players may have gotten the team to the edge of glory. However, it was one of the veteran players that guided Dallas into a date with Colorado in round two. Radek Faksa got into the game in Game 7 after not playing since April 24.

Dallas was 0-2 with the veteran Czech forward in the lineup. However, the 30-year-old came through with a clutch goal that pushed his team into the next round.

The Stars have young and dynamic talent, but it’s the crusty veterans that help win these post-season battles. A third or fourth-liner needs to provide a timely goal or two and Faksa was a roleplayer that was able to slot home an important goal. Dallas does have a nice mix of these older and younger players and they’ll need to be at their best against a rested Colorado team.

Coming Up Snake Eyes

Playoff hockey is a stereotypically low-scoring and goals are hard to come by. However, the Vegas attack seemed to crap out at the worst possible time. Dallas was one of the best scoring defences all season long. Conversely, the Golden Knights only netted five goals in the last three games of the series.

The Knights did force Game 7, but that was thanks to a great performance in goal from last year’s playoff netminder Adin Hill. Vegas does have the defencemen that can keep games tight, but the offence needs to pull its weight as well. Jack Eichel did his part, but others needed to pitch in.

Jonathan Marchessault won last year’s Conn Smythe Trophy for post-season MVP. However, he was held without a point in four of the team’s last five games in the series. Marchessault got off to a quick start with three points in Games 1 and 2, but the Stars made the adjustments needed.

Mark Stone came back from injury and recorded three points after netting the series-opening goal. The 31-year-old only had three goals with no assists the entire series. One could write off this as adjusting back into the game, but his team needed his timely scoring.

Getting Defensive

Both teams defensive units lived up to the hype. Game 1 was a seven-goal affair, but then things were very nip-and-tuck. Most games were low-scoring battles with only Game 4 having a total of six goals between the two teams.

The two clubs came into this series with some great defensive units and they lived up to the hype. Dallas settled down after the first two games and got strong play from Harley and Miro Heiskanen. The Stars were able to keep the big guns off the board for the most part after struggling the first two games. Heiskanen recorded a goal and four assists for five points to lead defenders on the team in that category in the series.

Vegas’ defence also had some solid moments. Noah Hanifin showed why he’s likely to be a fixture on the blueline for a number of seasons. The trade deadline acquisition recorded two goals and three assists for five points. However, another defenceman tied him in points. Brayden McNabb also got two goals and three assists for five points.

What it Means

Dallas can’t rest for too long as it faces a revived Colorado team. This is probably going to be another long and drawn-out series for the two rivals. It’s got the feeling of another heavyweight fight like the Stars vs Golden Knights was.

As for Vegas, there are some hard choices to be made. Marchessault is an unrestricted free agent in the offseason and could depart. The Knights will likely have to do some juggling in order to be cap-compliant. Some change will be coming for the former champs.