It's been a couple of rough playoff series for the Dallas Stars during their postseason run. In the first series, they had to weather the storm of the Colorado Avalanche and get Gabriel Landeskog back from his injury. In the second playoff series, the Stars took down the best team in the entire hockey league during the regular season. That was a very tough task with all of their scorers up and down the Winnipeg Jets' roster. It's time to get revenge on the Edmonton Oilers for eliminating Dallas last year.
The Dallas Stars will see familiar faces when they take on the Oilers in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals. First, the Stars will be former defenseman John Klingberg, who's been out a while due to injuries. The Stars will also see former player Corey Perry again in the Western Conference Finals. That will be an interesting storyline as Mason Marchment and Perry try to stir things up on the ice. That's going to be an interesting reunion on that front.
The Oilers will have to face the best goalscorer in the playoffs, Mikko Rantanen, this time around. Mikko has two hat tricks in the Stanley Cup Playoffs this season and is looking to add more to his total in the Western Conference Finals. They will also face Mikael Granlund, who was a welcome addition to the Stars' roster in February. However, that's not the most significant challenge the Oilers will face if they want to return to the Stanley Cup Finals.
The Oilers must go through Jake Oettinger to return to the Western Conference Finals. During this playoff run, Oettinger has been putting together a highlight-reel package for Team USA for the Winter Olympics. Jake has even stated he's more focused on being the starting goaltender in the Winter Olympics next season. However, Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl look to spoil his highlight reel. Getting to the Stanley Cup Finals might be tricky for the Oilers this season, as Oettinger is looking to prove he's starting goaltender material on the national level.
I think it will be another great series between both teams, as they want to take on the winner of the Florida Panthers and the Carolina Hurricanes. Both teams are hungry and ready to prove they belong as the top dog of the Western Conference. As I conclude this article, it's going to be a competitive series that goes the distance. May the best team represent the Western Conference in the Stanley Cup Finals this season. Stay tuned to Blackout Dallas as we get you ready by Wednesday for an intense series.