Well THAT sure was fun! After a rather disappointing outcome at American Airlines Center on Monday night, where the Dallas Stars' power play and goaltending wasn't up to par, the Stars pretty much delivered the perfect response on Wednesday night. The power play came out roaring, scoring three times in a four-goal first period, which ultimately chased Nashville Predators' goalie Pekka Rinne, on the way to a 5-1 drubbing of the Preds, to even the first-round playoff series at 2-2.
It was another star-studded night at the AAC. Dallas Cowboys's QB Dak Prescott waved his rally towel in approval all night.
The four-goal first period not only sent the Stars' faithful into delirium, it also sent the experts searching in the record books to find the last time the Stars had such a single playoff period. Turns out you have to go all the way back to April 27, 2008 when the Stars scored four goals in the third period against the San Jose Sharks. The franchise record for most goals in a playoff period is five, done five times and most recently on April 24, 1991 when the North Stars defeated St. Louis 8-4.
The Stars could have eased up or backed off after that first period, but instead they kept their foot on the gas, never letting the Preds off the mat. Here are the highlights from the entire game, including two goals from rookie Roope Hintz, another from Mats Zuccarello who now has 6 points in 6 games with the Stars, and oh yeah I can't forget about John Klingberg who had three primary assists on the night.
As the final seconds ticked off, I knew what was coming. The first chance to set off a flash-bang and streamers after a home playoff win. Here's my reaction from the PA Announcer chair, followed by my final score announcement and proclamation that "STARS WIN!"
Check out my entire Instagram Story from Game Four HERE
After the game ended, Dak Prescott and Ezekiel Elliott made their way down to the Stars locker room where they greeted a happy bunch of players and posed for pictures.
The Dallas Stars will now have 2 days to enjoy the win, and more importantly prepare for the crucial (and pivotal) Game 5 Saturday at 2pm in Nashville. With the Series tied 2-2, to say the next game is huge is an understatement. In the NHL, when a best-of-7 series is tied 2-2, the winner of Game 5 has an all-time series record of 205-55 (78.8 percent)