Stars Struck: Edmonton Oilers penalty killing kills the wrong team
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It wasn't so much penalty killing as penalty dying.
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In a game the Edmonton Oilers were in total control of, up 3-1 heading into the third period and firing on all cylinders, their biggest weakness in these playoffs reared its ugly head once again.
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It absolutely collapsed when they needed it most, bringing the team down with it.
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In a stunning turn of events Wednesday in Dallas, the Stars scored three power-play goals on three separate penalties in the first six minutes of the final frame to turn what looked like a humbling Game 1 loss into a brutal 6-3 victory.
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It was hard to watch. An Oilers team that prides itself on post-season composure melted into a blue and orange puddle.
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Miro Heiskanen scored on the power play 32 seconds into the third period to make it 3-2, Michael Granlund tied it 3-3 on another power play three minutes later and Matt Duchene made it 4-3 two minutes after that on the hat trick of man-advantage markers.
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Another one from Seguin at even strength and an empty-netter sealed the heartbreak and the Stars are up 1-0 in the Western Conference Final.
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It shouldn't have ended this way, not after the way it started.
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Edmonton showed right from the opening puck drop that their six-day layoff hadn't slowed their momentum one bit.
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Connor McDavid was flying. Leon Draisaitl was flying. The penalty kill had two great scoring chances on the first Stars power play. Stuart Skinner made a nice glove save. The power play scored 25 seconds into its first opportunity. Zach Hyman had 10 hits in the first two periods.
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And in what was supposed to be a battle between two power teams in the West, the Stars spent most of the night on their heels.
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Edmonton's star players were in big-game mode and Dallas struggled to keep up.
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Leon Draisaitl scored.
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Ryan Nugent Hopkins scored.
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Evan Bouchard scored.
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With Edmonton up 3-1 at the second intermission, the three of them had already combined for seven points.
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And it could have been worse, with Hyman hitting the crossbar and Darnell Nurse ringing one off the post.
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Playoff monster Mikko Rantanen, the guy with 19 points who, next to goaltender Jake Oettinger, was supposed to be Edmonton's biggest problem in this series? You didn't really notice him.
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And Oettinger? It took less than two periods for the Oilers to make another star opposition goaltender look pretty average.
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The only offence Dallas managed in the first 40 minutes was when Draisaitl turned the puck over just inside the Dallas blue line to send Tyler Seguin in on a breakaway. Beyond that, the Oilers were in charge.
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It wasn't.
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