Dallas Stars: Three Keys To Winning Game 7 Against St. Louis Blues

3. The Captain Must Have An Immediate, Lasting Impact

Before this series started on April 25, I wrote an article about three things to watch out for in the matchup. One of those focuses was Dallas Stars captain Jamie Benn.

And as the series finale approaches on Tuesday night, it’s just another reason to focus heavily on the captain’s play.

If the Dallas Stars want to win Game 7 and punch their ticket to round three, Jamie Benn might just be one of the cars that gets them there. And if he can have a major impact on the game, the Stars just might be in the driver’s seat.

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That’s because Benn has a history with the Blues. It’s not a particularly favorable history for Blues fans to look back on, but is all the more enticing for Stars fans.

In 39 career regular season games against the Blues, Benn has registered 19 goals and 39 points as well as a +14 rating. That includes two of his five career hat tricks. He’s a dominant force on the ice on most nights, but always seems to find an extra gear when it comes to St. Louis.

In 13 career playoff games against St. Louis, Benn has two goals and nine points.

On top of that, he knows how to get under their skin. Whether it’s his many spirited bouts with former Blues captain David Backes in the past, sitting on now-captain Alex Pietrangelo during play in a 2017-18 regular season contest, or simply by grabbing St. Louis players and putting them in headlocks as play is ongoing, he’s a nuisance that St. Louis can sometimes struggle to control.

It’s when they cannot control him that he ends up being the most effective. Maybe that means scoring a big goal at a critical moment or laying a heavy hit in the corner. Whatever the case may be, Benn always seems to find an opportunity to make a sizable impact.

And if he can do that in the biggest game of the Stars’ season, he could help lead them to victory. In Game 7 against the Blues in 2016, Benn was relatively invisible, registering no points and a -1 rating in 19:22 of ice time.

But this is a new opportunity. You have to expect that the result from 2016 still lingers in the back of the captain’s head when the Dallas Stars and St. Louis Blues meet up. And if that’s the case, we should get a consistent and lasting glimpse of peak Jamie Benn in this Game 7.

“It’s exciting,” added Stars captain Jamie Benn. “What a great opportunity in front of us and for both teams to go out there and battle it out for one game. Winner take all.”

Puck drop is scheduled for 7 p.m. from the Enterprise Center in St. Louis. And whether you have seen the first six acts of this show or not, you certainly won’t want to miss the finale.