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Dallas Stars Top Game Poll Pt. 8: Edmonton Or New York?

By Josh Clark |

Today, Blackout Dallas will be continuing a series for the second straight year. It was meant to start up at the beginning of July but with the NHL offseason mess, it had to wait. But since there is a bit of down time, now is the time to start it up!

We have made a bracket, one like you would see for the NBA or NHL playoffs, of the 16 best games of the Dallas Stars 2013-2014 regular season. We’re sure you will agree entirely with the 16 games that have been chosen, and if not, then just play along and comment at the end with which one you feel should have been given a chance.

So, we will put a poll up for each of the next 15 days featuring two of the games going head-to-head, with a brief argument for why it should be considered. Then, you can go to the bottom and vote on which one you think deserves to move on to the next round. The poll will expire 24 hours after it is put up, just in time for the next bracket of games to be put up. At the end of the Sweet 16, we will announce the winners of the entire round and start up the Elite 8, and so on and so forth. This is our second year to do this. Last season we received a good reaction from the readers, so we are going to do it for the second straight year.

This is the seventh day of the bracket, and multiple games have already moved on. Today is the final matchup of round one. Round two will start up fresh tomorrow with the Elite Eight still lingering.

Today we will take a look at the last two games of this poll: Dallas Stars @ Edmonton Oilers on December 21st VS. New York Islanders @ Dallas Stars on March 3rd

Dallas Stars @ Edmonton Oilers, 6-5 F (SO):

Arguably the best game of the Dallas Stars entire season, this one most assuredly had to make the cut. It was just four days before Christmas and the Stars were finishing up their three-game Western Canada road swing. Riding a three game winning streak on their way to play the last place team in the Western Conference, they certainly had high expectations.

But somehow their expectations were not met, at least not immediately. In an early 5:00 PM matchup, the Oilers struck first. After falling behind 1-0, the Stars powered ahead and took a 2-1 lead into the first intermission. All seemed okay until the second period began and the Oilers went on a three goal tear. These three goals were dropped on the Stars in a matter of 9:19, leaving them stranded in a 4-2 hole.

The decision was made after the fourth goal to pull Kari Lehtonen from the crease in exchange for Anders Lindback, who had just returned from a trip to the AHL to “find himself.” In other words, there was not much hope for a Stars victory. A quick goal from Taylor Hall to make it 5-2 didn’t help either.

With 20.5 seconds remaining in the second, Stars captain Jamie Benn scored a power play goal to bring it within two shots. The third period was where Tyler Seguin took control. Seguin scored two goals in the first 9:13 to tie things up and take it to overtime. Eventually, the shootout came along and eight rounds later, the former Oiler Shawn Horcoff ended it. Lindback earned his first NHL win of the season and the Stars erased a three goal deficit to win it in a shootout and give their fans an early Christmas present.

New York Islanders @ Dallas Stars, 3-2 F (OT):

On March 3rd, the Dallas Stars were in a bind. They had not won any of their past six games, translating to two weeks without a two-point game.

The Dallas Stars were scheduled to face off against one of the Eastern Conference’s best, the New York Islanders. They had not beaten the Islanders in their past three attempts, dating back to the 2013-2014 season, and the odds seemed stacked against them.

In the first period, the Stars defense faltered for the umpteenth time, giving away an easy feed in front to give the Islanders the 1-0 lead. After a scoreless second period with both goaltenders standing strong, the third period truly became the make-or-break point of the Stars entire season.

Brett Ritchie tallied a goal early and Vernon Fiddler scored a few minutes later to take a 2-1 lead for the Stars. The ultimate epitome of the Dallas Stars season came later in the game, about as late as you can get. While trying to hold on to the lead and facing a 6-on-5, Jordie Benn skated in front of the crease, trying to block any incoming shots. With two seconds left, the puck found a way to deflect off of Benn’s skate and into the goal to tie the game at 2-2.

But it would all turn out okay. After a few chances for both teams in overtime, Jamie Benn sent a beautiful assist to Cody Eakin for the winning goal on an offensive rush. The Stars won 3-2 and so their magical month of March began.

Now that you have been refreshed on the games, it’s time for you to let your voice be heard. Vote below on which game you think was the more entertaining. The poll will deactivate in 24 hours and the winning game will move on to the next round. Apologies to anyone using the mobile app as it does not currently support our polls. But we encourage you to find us online or through social media and vote there!

Be on the lookout tomorrow for the next edition of this series. The Stars had some memorable games this past season, but which one was the most memorable? You can help make this decision by casting your vote down below.

Next: Battle Of The Crease Pt. 2: Why Niemi Is Right Choice

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