Mental fortitude takes center stage as Stars, Avalanche prepare for Game 7

One of the great things about this playoff series between the Stars and Avalanche (and there have been many great things) is how much it has displayed the mental side of sports.

After losing yet another Game 1, the Stars admitted they had intense desperation in Game 2. They used that to take a 4-3 overtime win in which Evgenii Dadonov tied the game in the third period and Colin Blackwell won it in OT. Colorado then showed its desperation in Game 4 when it didn’t want to get down 3-1 in the series and instead claimed a convincing victory. The Stars answered with desperation in Game 5, and then Colorado drove the bus with an inspired performance in Game 6.

In a lot of ways, Game 6 showed the mental mettle of both teams, and that’s why Game 7 should be fascinating.

Think about it. Coach Pete DeBoer is 8-0 in his career in Game 7s. Colorado coach Jared Bednar is 0-3 in these do-or-die tests.

DeBoer said that shouldn’t matter, and if you want to get philosophical, previous seasons shouldn’t matter when it comes to the present. But even if you just concentrate on this year, the pressure is mind-blowing.

Dallas started with a real desire to take the next step. The Stars have been to two straight Western Conference Finals and have a stinging regret that they allowed a chance to get to the Stanley Cup Final slip away. Mix that drive with the most adversity this team has seen in years, and you have a swirling concoction of visible hunger and quiet resolution. That was reflected in the trade deadline deal to get Mikko Rantanen. Injuries to Tyler Seguin and Miro Heiskanen opened the door to use Long Term Injured Reserve to make a big splash for the first time.

Other teams have done that in the past, and the Stars decided now was their time. Dallas traded two first-round picks, two third-round picks and Logan Stankoven for Rantanen and then gave him an eight-year contract extension that averages $12 million. That’s a huge step for a franchise built on more conservative thinking, but it also underscores just how much this team feels the time to win is now.

So consider that as the Stars stare down a potential “early” end to the playoffs. And across the ice, ponder what Colorado is going through. The Avalanche won the Cup in 2022, but haven’t defended that championship well. They went out in the First Round to a wild card Krake team in 2023 and lost in the Second Round to the Stars last year. That prompted management to pretty much flip half the roster after a slow start this season. In addition to moving Rantanen for Martin Nečas and Jack Drury, they added forwards such as Charlie Coyle and Brock Nelson, defensemen such as Ryan Lindgren, as well as goalies Mackenzie Blackwood and Scott Wedgewood.

Imagine how they’ll feel if their next stop is the golf course after Saturday’s game.

It’s weighty stuff on both sides. The Stars are without Heiskanen and Jason Robertson. One or both might be available soon, and that also factors into the mental ping pong going on. As fried as you are at home watching on TV, think about being in the middle of this storm.

And yet, as much as that is searing the frontal lobes of both players and coaches, you have a heaping helping of uncontrollable uncertainty that makes all of this worrying seem foolish. The game-winner last game was an “own goal” where Sam Steel shot a puck off of Colin Blackwell and just over the outstretched glove of Jake Oettinger. Before that, a Colorado shot bounced off the skates of two different Stars defensemen. Heck, this whole series started with Artturi Lehkonen scoring one of the most ridiculous goals we have seen in recent years. The Colorado forward got tangled up, and as he fell, his skate scooped up a puck and flipped it over Oettinger and into the net.

It makes you appreciate the randomness of this sport.

As hard as that is to rationalize, the feeling in both dressing rooms is that the team that plays the best hockey will win. That’s the beauty of a seven-game series. That’s the beauty of Game 7.

Oetinger has the right to be more frustrated than anyone. He is playing some of the best hockey of his career, but is sitting with a 2.99 GAA and .909 save percentage. After the pinball wizard goal on Thursday, he said, “All you can do is laugh.”

Oettinger will help drive the bus in Game 7 because of that attitude. Ask how he sees the upcoming mental strain, he just smiled and said: “For me, I just want to have fun and have no regrets and see what happens. Your whole season comes down to one game, that’s pretty exciting.”

Multimedia superstar Bob Sturm has the perfect description for this feeling: “Ice cream headache.” You love the taste of the ice cream, you want more ice cream, but sometimes you eat it too fast and feel extreme pain. Hockey is like that. So as you prepare to munch down on Saturday night, remember to take a deep breath and pace yourself. There is going to be a whole lot for the brain to digest.

“Now we’ve got a great opportunity -- home for Game 7,” DeBoer said. “We’ve been in this situation before. No one gave us a chance to win this series, and here we are with one game at home to advance, so that’s a great situation to be in.”

This story was not subject to the approval of the National Hockey League or Dallas Stars Hockey Club.

Mike Heika is a Senior Staff Writer for DallasStars.com and has covered the Stars since 1994. Follow him on X @MikeHeika.