Stars Mikko Rantanen Sends His Former Team Packing In Unbelievable Game 7 Against Avalanche
Mikko Rantanen was one of the biggest stories of the NHL season, from his stunning trade from the Colorado Avalanche to the Carolina Hurricanes, who were then forced to flip him ahead of the trade deadline to the Dallas Stars.
So, it's only fitting that the Rantanen and the Stars would meet the Avs in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, and even more fitting that he threw down one of the most incredible Game 7 performances in recent memory to send the Stars into the second round.
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We're going to skip ahead to the third period, because to that point, it was all Avalanche, with Colorado holding a 2-0 lead.
As they closed in on the halfway point of the third period, Rantanen gave the Stars the goal they desperately needed to cut the lead in half.
And, as if that wasn't enough, Rantanen said, "You know what? I think I'd like another one of those," and tied the game at 2-2, with just over six minutes left in regulation.
Then, after a somewhat controversial holding call on Colorado's Jack Drury, the Stars took the lead thanks to a power-play goal from Wyatt Johnston.
And who do you think had the secondary assist on it?
…
Yeah, you guessed it; Mikko Rantanen.
At the end of regulation, Colorado pulled goaltender Mackenzie Blackwood for the extra attacker and after a few stoppages from big saves by Dallas netminder Jake Oettinger, they managed to get the puck out of their end and into the neutral zone, where it was picked up none other than Mikko Rantanen to cap off the hat trick.
Un. Believable.
With that win, Dallas head coach Pete DeBoer is 9-0 in Game 7s, which is a stat that doesn't even sound possible.
And, as if all of this wasn't crazy enough, you have to remember that Dallas played the entire series without their leading scorer Jason Robertson — who was hurt in the regular season finale and could return in the second round — and their top defenseman Miro Heiskanen who has been out of commission since January.
I don't know about you, but I'm picking up "Team of Destiny" vibes from these Stars.
They're now officially on to the next round, where they'll meet the winner of Sunday night's Game 7 between the St. Louis Blues and Winnipeg Jets.