Forward Jason Robertson led the Dallas Stars this season with 46 goals and 109 points, and his team desperately needed his performance to maintain their slim chance of winning the Western Conference Finals. He also did an excellent job of answering the call on Thursday.
The 23-year-old shone in a 3-2 overtime win over the Vegas Golden Knights in game four of the series on Thursday. He fired a whopping 11 shots and scored a double in regular time. His performance made up for the absence of some key players like Jamie Benn (suspended) and Evgenii Dadonov (lower body injury).
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“Some people had to get up in Jamie’s absence,” Robertson said, as reported by NHL.com. We needed goals and that’s the responsibility I put on my shoulders. Those streaks were difficult, but I know I’m playing on too good a line with too good players not to create chances.
So far in the 2023 playoffs, the hockey player has maintained an interesting cruising pace with 17 points in as many encounters. At important moments, the best elements of a team must prevail and the number 21 succeeded on Thursday. We have to keep going.
“When he’s at his best, he just takes control of the game,” goalkeeper Jake Oettinger told the same source. Seems like he doesn’t think so, he shoots every chance he gets and he makes the people around him even better. This time he was by far our best player. We hope it will continue like this.”
Not impossible but…
Dallas is attempting the colossal task of winning a series after losing the first three games. Four teams in National Hockey League history have accomplished this feat, with the Philadelphia Flyers (2010) and Los Angeles Kings (2014) being the most recent offenders. But no matter what the tour books say, what matters is the next game you win and the work that goes into making it happen. Even in the dressing room of the stars, desperation has not yet found its way.
“The difference is so small at this time of year. You hit a good performance and suddenly you’re 3-0 down. We suffered a couple of losses in overtime, even though we played good hockey. We have to rely on our good game and believe that we can gain more time,” said veteran Joe Pavelski, author of the decisive net, on Thursday.
Game five will be broadcast on TVA Sports on Saturday at 8pm.