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Dallas Stars: Antoine Roussel’s Five Best Moments As A Star

By Josh Clark

ST. PAUL, MN - DECEMBER 27: Dallas Stars left wing Antoine Roussel (21) looks on during the Central Division game between the Dallas Stars and the Minnesota Wild on December 27, 2017 at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota. The Wild defeated the Stars 4-2. (Photo by David Berding/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
ST. PAUL, MN - DECEMBER 27: Dallas Stars left wing Antoine Roussel (21) looks on during the Central Division game between the Dallas Stars and the Minnesota Wild on December 27, 2017 at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota. The Wild defeated the Stars 4-2. (Photo by David Berding/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /
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4. A Weird First Playoff Goal

Antoine Roussel isn’t known for being a regular or high-caliber scorer. His strengths tend to lie solely in playing physical on the forecheck and using his speed to start offensive rushes. And when he does score the puck, it’s usually a “clean up job” in front of the net off of a rebound or deflection.

Goals seem to be even harder to come by in the postseason for most players. And yet, Roussel found a way to break through and score his first career postseason goal in his eighth playoff game. That was game two of the Stars’ first round series against the Minnesota Wild in 2016.

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But the goal wasn’t one of Roussel’s typical goals. On top of that, it wasn’t a clean snipe or backhand shot either. Instead, it just might be the weirdest goal you’ve ever seen scored by a Stars player in a playoff game.

After a scoreless first period, Dallas was once again on the attack and outplaying Minnesota in the second. Just a few minutes into the period, the dominant line of Roussel, Radek Faksa, and Ales Hemsky put together an offensive rush.

The puck ended up behind the net and near the boards, where a Minnesota defender came to retrieve it. But after Hemsky disrupted his attempt at a pass, the puck deflected back towards Roussel, who was standing behind the net at the time. And, well, you can watch the rest for yourself.

The goal was immediately waved off due to the net coming off of its moorings, but the officials decided to take a further look at it due to Roussel’s persistence.

The review took quite an extensive amount of time, but what a goal it turned out to be. The fact that the puck bounced off of Roussel’s skate so perfectly, bounced over the net, and landed on Devan Dubnyk‘s back so he could carry the puck in himself is just otherworldly.

And the fact that it happened to Antoine Roussel for his first playoff goal seems fitting. He’s a unique kind of player, so why not let him score the unique goal in a big game?

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