Getty Dallas Stars head coach Peter DeBoer blasted a reporter after Game 5.
When you find yourself on the verge of getting eliminated from contention, such as the Dallas Stars following Friday’s loss to the Edmonton Oilers, you can get heated.
That’s what happened to Stars head coach Pete DeBoer, who voiced his frustration in the postgame press conference after the team’s 3-1 defeat at the hands of the Oilers in Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals.
The highlight of DeBoer’s presser came when he took issue with a reporter’s question that criticized the team’s effort level during the second period, which was described as “lifeless.”
Pete DeBoer took major exception to a question calling out the Stars Game 5 effort 😳
“Listen, there’s always things you can do better. You can sit here and question our character if you want,” DeBoer said on May 31. You (the reporter asking the question) haven’t been around all year. I haven’t seen you here all year. There you are, that’s what you’re doing. I’m not going to do it.
“You go ahead and write whatever the (expletive) you want.”
The series now shifts back to Edmonton for Game 6, where the Oilers will have the first of two chances to advance to their first Stanley Cup Final since 2006. The Stars, on the other hand, must win back-to-back games if they want to get there for the first time since they last did in 2020.
Stars Facing Elimination Following Game 5 Loss
The Stars mimicked the Rangers of the Eastern Conference entering a pivotal Game 5 at home but losing to their lower-seeded foe. Both New York and Dallas are now facing elimination with the first of their win-or-go-home games played on the road.
Stars forward Matt Duchene, who is seeking his first Stanley Cup championship and running out of time already aged 33, admitted the team has struggled offensively throughout the series.
“We haven’t had our best for other than probably Game 3,” Duchene told reporters after the game on May 31. “The nice thing is we’re still in this series and just got to win one at a time here.”
Edmonton has scored at least 3 goals in four of the five games played in the conference finals except Game 2. The Stars, however, have failed to score 3 or more goals in all games except Game 3 when they defeated the Oilers 5-3 on the road.
Despite the loss, the Stars remain hopeful in their chances of pulling off the comeback by beating the Oilers twice, something they already did through Game 3 of the series.
Forward Wyatt Johnston, who scored his 10th goal of the playoffs in the third period and the only one by Dallas in Game 5, sounded confident in the team’s ability to bounce back going forward.
“We have the confidence that if we play our best game, then we can beat anyone,” Johnston said during his postgame media availability on May 31. “So it’s just a matter of us doing that next game, putting our best game on the ice, and just having that desperation, playing our best game, and we have that confidence to do that.”
Game 5 Gone Wrong From the Get-Go
The Oilers took control early in Game 5, with Ryan Nugent-Hopkins scoring on a power play just 18 seconds after a penalty was called in the first period at the 14:09 mark.
He did it again in the second frame, just 1:06 into the middle stanza. Four minutes later in the same period, Philip Broberg extended the Oilers’ lead with his first goal of the Stanley Cup Playoffs to make it 3-0 and put the Stars’ backs against the elimination wall.
EDM DAL G5. May 31, 2024. Wyatt Johnston goal. 3-1. 🎥: Sportsnet | NHL
The Stars managed to respond in the third period with Johnston’s goal but it was too little, too late for Dallas as Oilers goalie Stuart Skinner made 19 saves in a low-event offensive game by the Texas-based club.
Dallas remains optimistic about the series, even though they can only win games going forward if they want to advance to the Stanley Cup Final.
“We were the best road team in the regular season and have gone 6-2 away from home in the playoffs,” said DeBoer. “We believe we can turn this around.”
The Oilers had managed to post the same record in home and road games this postseason, going 5-3 in matches played in Edmonton and away from it before Game 5. Following Friday’s result, the Oilers are 6-3 on the road and 5-3 in home games.
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Stars Coach Peter DeBoer Burns Reporter With Heated Answer