Are you ready for another Game 7?
As if last night’s clash between the Dallas Stars and St. Louis Blues wasn’t enough, hockey fans everywhere will be spoiled with another winner-take-all game for a spot in the Western Conference Final.
The Colorado Avalanche, who were the clear underdogs heading into this series against the San Jose Sharks, were able to fend off elimination thanks to captain Gabriel Landeskog’s OT winner in Game 6. Now, they’ll have to find a way to get the job done on the road tonight (9 p.m. ET; NBCSN; Live stream).
The most impressive thing about Colorado’s Game 6 win, is that their top line struggled during regulation, but they found a way to come up big in the biggest moment of the game. Landeskog, Nathan MacKinnon and Mikko Rantanen were on the ice for all three of San Jose’s goals in regulation.
The reason the Avalanche kept pulling ahead, is because their secondary scoring came through in a big way. It all started with J.T. Compher, who scored two goals and added an assist. Compher picked the perfect time to take his game to another level. Tyson Jost and Alex Kerfoot also had solid performances for their team.
“I mean, their depth guys beat us tonight,” Sharks forward Logan Couture said after Game 6. “We got beat by J.T. Compher, Tyson Jost, their second and third lines. Our depth guys have to be better than their depth guys.”
Can the Avs’ depth players come up big again in Game 7? And can the Sharks find a way to keep Colorado’s top line quiet for 60-plus minutes? A spot in the Western Conference Final might depend on it.
“It’s a great opportunity for us… 60 minutes away from the Western Conference Final,” Landeskog said. “I mean, who would have thought [it] before the season, who would have thought [it] before this series or whatever so, for us, we keep believing, and you’ve just got to instill that doubt in that team on the other side, and at this point, I doubt the last thing they wanted to do was go back and play another one at home in San Jose.”
[NBC 2019 STANLEY CUP PLAYOFF HUB]
TUESDAY’S SCORES
Blues 2, Stars 1 (2 OT)
The Buzzer has more on Tuesday’s action
PHT’s Round 2 previews
• Round 2 schedule, TV info
• Questions for the final eight teams
• PHT Roundtable
• Avalanche vs. Sharks
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Joey Alfieri is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @joeyalfieri.