Dallas Stars Trounce Predators In Game 4, Even Up Playoff Series
In a game that the Dallas Stars really needed to win, they didn’t disappoint. They trounced the Nashville Predators on home ice in Game 4, knotting the series up at 2-2 and shifting the pressure back to the Central division champions.
Through the first four minutes of Game 4, the Dallas Stars looked to be, at the very least, ready to fight for a critical win. Through nine minutes, they seemed to have a clear advantage over the Nashville Predators. And with less than 10 minutes to go in the opening frame, the game seemed all but over.
By the time the third period actually wrapped up, the Stars had a decisive 5-1 advantage on the scoreboard and had evened up the first round series at 2-2.
It was exactly the kind of win that Dallas needed considering their circumstances going into the game.
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As Game 4 quickly approached, the Stars found themselves in a high-pressure situation. After picking up a big win in game one on the road in Nashville last Wednesday, Dallas slipped up in Games 2-3 and fell behind for the first time in their opening round series.
It wasn’t from a lack of trying, though. The Dallas Stars dropped 2-1 in overtime in Game 2 at the hands of a Predators team desperate to pick up a win at home. And with the series tied and shifting back to Dallas, the Stars outplayed and outdid Nashville in almost every facet in Game 3, but still managed to drop a narrow 3-2 loss.
With a losing skid building and the Predators trying to push them to the brink, the Stars had a lot riding on Game 4. Could they even up the series using desperation after falling short in their first home ice playoff game? Or would they drop into a 3-1 deficit and be forced to win three straight (including two in Nashville against a Predators team that would be bearing down)?
They answered that question relatively quickly in Game 4.
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It all started with a power play. After building up an 0/11 drought on the man advantage from the third period in Game 1 through Game 3, Dallas finally broke out of their slump when Roope Hintz tallied on the game’s first power play. Hintz’s shot was a laser that sailed over the shoulder of Pekka Rinne and gave the Stars a 1-0 lead at the 16:18 mark of the opening frame.
76 seconds later, Alexander Radulov joined in on the fun. Off of an offensive zone face-off, Radulov scored a power play goal of his own to bump the Stars to a 2-0 lead and a 2/2 mark on the man advantage.
Less than four minutes after that, the Stars kept their powerful start going when Blake Comeau created a rebound off of Rinne that Andrew Cogliano cashed in on to push the lead to 3-0.
With 6:15 left in the first, it became 4-0 Stars as Mats Zuccarello pinned yet another power play goal on the board and put Dallas in front by a mile. It also forced a goalie change for the Predators as Rinne, who was brilliant in Game 3 and played a primary role in pushing Nashville to a win, was chased from the net with a .500 save percentage and replaced by Juuse Saros. And while the Predators continued struggling with getting their attack together and staying out of the penalty box, the Stars poured it on.
The successes continued into the second period for the home team when John Klingberg forced a turnover in the Nashville zone and helped turn a 2-on-1 into another goal for Hintz. After a strong performance in game one both on offense and the power play, the rookie finally found the back of the net for his first two NHL playoff goals.
“He’s generating chances. In Game 1, I thought he’s the one that dictated our drive play to their net. Game 2, he wasn’t as dominant. Last game, he was very effective. Tonight, the puck goes in. It’s good for your confidence, but we know what he brings to our team. He’s a legitimate top six and he’s made our team have two lines.” – Stars coach Jim Montgomery on Roope Hintz
Just like that, it was 5-0 Dallas and the Stars didn’t looking back in any way.
Ben Bishop put up an impressive rebound performance after a rough Game 3, stopping 34-35 and only allowing one goal against when Roman Josi scored through traffic in the third period.
“Too bad I can’t have it every single night,” said Bishop about the team’s goal support. “But the guys did a good job of responding after last game. They came out hard, the power play was good, and the special teams was great. It was nice to get one in front of our fans and now we get ready for Nashville.”
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As the final seconds ticked off the clock and a sold-out crowd of 18,532 stood up and applauded, the Dallas Stars locked up a confident 5-1 win and pushed the series back to even.
And while the Predators had the upper hand in terms of shots on net (35-29), it didn’t matter. The Stars cashed in on their opportunities when they were granted them, owned the face-off dot for the second consecutive game (with a win percentage of 53.3 percent), outhit the Predators 31-25, blocked 31 shots, and finished 3/6 on the power play and 2/2 on the penalty kill.
That was a game that the Dallas Stars needed. And in the first few minutes, they proved rather quickly that it was a game they wanted, too.
While Game 1 was a perfect way to start the series for the Stars, Game 4 was a perfect bounce back effort that reestablished their momentum and pushed Dallas back into the driver’s seat of the series.
“We just want to keep getting better,” said Montgomery. “I knew Bish was going to bounce back. It was nice to see the power play do it in such a dominant fashion. It was nice for us to get the series back even.”
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And now, the series shifts back to Nashville for Game 5 on Saturday afternoon. And for the moment, the Stars seem to have a lot of momentum to ride on to the Music City.