00:00It's time to puck around and find out.
00:04So let's look back on some of the stuff that's happened in the Stars Wild series thus far,
00:08get y'all's predictions, and then look ahead to Game 6 tonight as predicted.
00:14And we might have even mentioned it yesterday.
00:16Lundqvist is not available for the game tonight.
00:23And I feel like the other day, maybe it was yesterday when you said there was more complications to it.
00:29And as soon as I heard complications, I was like, well, that doesn't sound good.
00:34Yeah, and does that go under upper body injury?
00:37I guess so.
00:38In the grand scheme of things.
00:40I was thinking about that the other night.
00:42Is the reason behind that, because I don't know if I've ever heard a reason behind upper and lower body
00:47injury thing,
00:48is it because they don't want specifically a player targeting something like that?
00:53Yeah!
00:53They're like, we don't want to know it's a wrist and people to go after his wrist.
00:57Or maybe the first person that did it, they accept the league, accepted it, and they're like, great!
01:01Sounds good.
01:01Let's just keep doing that so we don't have to reveal anything about our players.
01:06Now it feels the norm.
01:07Like, if you heard something more specific, it would be like, wait, what?
01:10How did I get this information?
01:12All right, so there's that to start off.
01:15We've already talked about Michael Bunting being out there tonight.
01:19Took a whole lot of time.
01:20Feels like he made that move for a reason.
01:22We've all been waiting on that, but I want to bring the spotlight back to two players that we started
01:27talking about yesterday.
01:29Miko Rantanen.
01:30Some people, Alec, you brought this into my view, are calling him Meek Rantanen.
01:36He has one goal in this series and a plus-minus.
01:40I have a question.
01:42Sure.
01:42Where is that coming from?
01:45What do you mean?
01:46Where is the Meek Rantanen thing?
01:48Like, who's saying that?
01:49I heard it from Alec.
01:50Alec?
01:51I don't know if he started it or not.
01:54I didn't start it.
01:54I wish I did because it's creative as hell.
01:56When you're seeing it, like, in social media, that's kind of where you're seeing that?
01:59Yeah, I think it started from an NHL writer for The Athletic, I think, called him that in a piece
02:04after the previous game, and I saw it all over Twitter.
02:07And I didn't know if that was something that had come from Colorado, too, that was kind of a history
02:11that we had here.
02:12When you said that this morning, I was like, ooh, this is interesting.
02:15Kind of, because we brought up one of the things that we've discussed a lot is there are times when
02:21Meek Rantanen no doubt looks like he is one of the top five unquestioned players in the NHL.
02:28But unfortunately, that was kind of the knock on him going into this, is there were also times where he
02:34disappeared entirely.
02:36Now, this is one of those times.
02:37Yes, and it's coming at the worst time.
02:39Now, he's a minus five.
02:41If Wyatt Johnston is also a minus five thus far in this series, he has no points in the past
02:48two games.
02:49And I want to go back to the idea that Meek Rantanen is still hurt.
02:53I am not questioning Meek Rantanen's toughness or anything like that.
02:59But if he's still hurt, you need to express that more directly, and then you need to sit.
03:05Because what you're doing right now isn't cutting it.
03:08I saw a thread on Reddit, and they're like, well, if he's still hurt, this is incredible and heroic.
03:13And to a point, yes, it is incredible.
03:16Heroic disagree if you're slowing your team down.
03:19He was relying on you to be that version.
03:21Yeah, and he's been nowhere near as aggressive as, for example, that Colorado series for last year.
03:26When he took over, and you could watch him take the Avalanche's soul, you've seen nothing close to that in
03:34this series.
03:35What you've essentially seen is, they're all kind of going, well, we hope Robertson does it or we don't have
03:39anything else.
03:40It does kind of feel like that, or man, I hope this is Ottinger's best night.
03:43Yeah.
03:44And he's shown flashes of that, but I wonder if this is going to need to be a game where
03:49Ottinger wins it for you.
03:50I hope not, but let's take a look at the offense.
03:53You mentioned it, Robertson, who's now scored in eight straight playoff games, extending his already existent Stars record.
04:00But in the regular season, Minnesota and the Stars were both middle of the pack when it came to five
04:07-on-five goals.
04:08The Stars had 170, and Minnesota had 168.
04:14Okay.
04:14But what has happened in this series?
04:17I believe it's 12-3 now, five-on-five goals in favor of Minnesota.
04:23Robert Tiffin dropped the note.
04:25We'll have him on the show tomorrow, hopefully, gearing up for Game 7.
04:28That Walstead looks like he's going to finish this series with about a 98% save percentage in five-on
04:36-five.
04:36And the thing that's scary about that is he hasn't had to work that hard to do it.
04:42Gullitson talked about after Game 5, sure, shots get blocked.
04:46I get it.
04:47But how many shots did they just flat-out miss?
04:50Well, you're right.
04:52There have been so many areas where – and he said the word of, you know, bring yourself a sense
04:58of calm in those moments so that you don't rush it.
05:02But there are also those moments, Kevin, where they're scrambling in front of the net with a puck that's loose
05:06that they just can't put home.
05:08And you're not used to seeing that either.
05:10You're used to seeing the Stars be that.
05:13There's also Minnesota, especially when they get this advantage, when they get a lead in a game, they're doing a
05:18good job of making it easy on their goalie.
05:21And that is by pushing everything to the outside.
05:25I think it was Razor mentioned it, and then I saw Tiffin talk about it, too.
05:29It's like an umbrella where you just kind of push everything out here.
05:33You're free in the middle.
05:34So what does that do for your goalie?
05:36It limits the areas where he has to be aware and cognizant of the puck coming from.
05:41He's like, I can focus here and here, and I don't have to worry too much about this because my
05:45defense is doing such a good job in front of me there that it just kind of creates less shooting
05:49lanes for the opponent.
05:51And that's what they're doing so far.
05:53And the Stars have to figure out how to force their way into those lanes but finish like you just
05:59said.
05:59Finish those whenever they are there because the misses were pretty – they were pretty bad.
06:04What was it, 2.59% they're shooting effectively on goal?
06:08In five-on-five situations, I believe that is correct, which, as you brought to us two days ago, is
06:14dead last of the –
06:1616 of 16.
06:17Yeah, of the 16 playoff teams.
06:20And so what's interesting about that is look last year at the Oilers series.
06:24Conference final, five-on-five.
06:27Oilers outscored the Stars 13-5.
06:30At the time, people were quick to blame the head coach and say, hey, you know, this is problematic and
06:40your rush-based offensive attack just isn't working.
06:44So then Gulletin was brought in.
06:46He's provided more in-zone offensive looks.
06:49I think you have a better, in theory, defensive structure.
06:53I think those things have happened.
06:54And yet, now that you're here, your five-on-five game has been like a fart in church.
07:01And how do you change that?
07:05You feel like the talent's there.
07:07See, this is where the Jim Nill question that you brought up the other day, Kevin, I have a hard
07:10time with.
07:11Because if I'm looking around the league, aren't I, as most owners, going, well, I got a dude that collected
07:17the best amount of talent possible.
07:20He collected me top five talent.
07:22It's there.
07:23Here, what's the problem?
07:26And then you start looking at the individual.
07:28You really do drill down into it.
07:29You're like, well, this and this.
07:31And this bend line hasn't done this.
07:33And you start questioning those other things.
07:35But the big deal is that five-on-five right now has changed a lot dramatically.
07:40But again, you want to get on power plays.
07:42You need to get on power plays.
07:44You need.
07:44But if you get there, you have to punish them.
07:47They can't be held to zeros on those.
07:50And so, look, hopefully you win the next two games and that's the start of 14 more wins and you
07:56hoist the cup and everything like that.
07:57But sometimes, just sometimes, I wonder that nobody ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever seems to give any kind of
08:08pushback on Jim Nill.
08:10Jim Nill is the best.
08:12So, we've won three straight cups or what's the story with that?
08:16I think it comes down to do you want to be close hanging around the rim?
08:21Yes.
08:22And you are.
08:22Like, that's a constant thing is you are hanging around the rim.
08:26And a lot of people, hell, Mark Cuban said that a long time ago, finding people to run your business
08:33is one of the hardest things to do.
08:34Yeah.
08:35I got a guy that's doing a very good job of it, but that one extra degree higher will take
08:41us there.
08:42Does he have that?
08:43And what is it that turns that back on?
08:45I don't know, man.
08:47I agree with you.
08:48There's a lot of ways to point fingers.
08:50I think you're right, though, Kevin, for tonight specifically.
08:52And I want to make it clear.
08:54I think Jim Nill is very, very good at his job, but it seems like criticism of him is just
08:59not allowed, which I think is just obviously pure foolishness.
09:03Because whether or not you think it's just the goalie that's not pulling his weight, I don't necessarily know if
09:09I think that's the case in this series outside of Game 1 whatsoever.
09:13But who signed the extension on that?
09:15We have the best talent in the world, except when we really, really need them to step up their game
09:21against the real best talent in the world.
09:22No, you got a good point there.
09:24It's very good talent, very expensive talent that puts you in contention, but not hoisting the cup.
09:32Can I give you my scenario for tonight?
09:35Jason Robertson's going to get a point.
09:38That hasn't been the case.
09:39He's more reliable than your favorite wrench.
09:42That's just what it is.
09:43I like that.
09:44I think Jason Robertson gets you a point tonight.
09:46I think that on the penalty kill part, back at it tonight.
09:54Adding Bunting and Petrovic, you are a more physical team tonight.
09:58You are not the physical team the last two games.
10:01The last five periods, you have not been the more physical team.
10:06I felt in Minnesota in Game 2, they turned it up a little in the second period,
10:10and then in the third period, they turned it absolutely up and threw out the night on Saturday, or on
10:16Monday.
10:16It just looked like they were hitting you every chance, and you were avoiding contact.
10:21Which is a shame, because for the first half of overtime in Game 4, I really thought the Stars are
10:26going to win this.
10:27Yeah.
10:27But then, obviously, the second half of overtime turned against them.
10:30And we discussed it, that fluky puck that puts you in the position in Game 4, or Game 3, Game
10:384.
10:39The fluky puck that went off of Haskinen's leg.
10:45And then, Kevin, let me add this last part.
10:48You brought up Ottinger having his game.
10:53He's going up to Minnesota, where he's from.
10:56He goes to that pond where he grew up on, Kevin, and he sits down, and he laces his skates
11:02up.
11:02The one that had been sitting in his room, you know, for the last six years.
11:06He laces them up, and he gets out on the ice.
11:08He starts having memories of his old coach telling him, you know, a quarter of an inch this way, and
11:12a quarter of an inch that way.
11:13Mighty Ducks.
11:14And he just has those refreshing memories of shutouts as a child, you know?
11:18And he has all those memories come flooding back to him.
11:21And he goes out, Kevin, and tonight, he delivers a shutout performance in a definitive, and some would say pivotal.
11:31Well, yeah.
11:33Pivotal!
11:33Game 6.
11:34Your season's over if you don't win.
11:36Well, in that case, I feel like we're going to win 1-0, because Robertson is going to get his
11:40goal.
11:40And then I'm just going to throw this out there from the 8-1-7.
11:42It's not Jim's fault.
11:43It's coaching.
11:44This is the sixth coach that Jim Neal has hired.
11:49So I just want that under consideration, just so we can have more constructive conversations,
11:56if, unfortunately, tonight doesn't go the way we want it to go.
12:00Minnesota is, however, a very slight favorite.
12:05So, obviously, hoping the Stars can win this thing, and then you go back to your barn for Game 7.
12:13And here's the good news.
12:14The Stars, and I know they already lost Game 5, so it kind of puts you up against it.
12:19They're 18-13 all-time in a playoff series that's at 2-2.
12:25However, when that series begins at home, which this one did, the Stars are 13-4 in a series that
12:35they were sitting at 2-2.
12:36So if you can push it to Game 7, just historically, this team has been really, really good, especially in
12:43Game 7s at home.
12:46Now, on the flip side, if you want all of the math, unfortunately, I will present it to you.
12:50The winner of Game 5 in NHL history, so not just the Stars, NHL history, after the series was tied
12:572-2.
12:58Whoever wins Game 5 has won 239 of those 301 series.
13:05So that is a decided advantage.
13:07Do you think, you say Stars, what say you?
13:10Corey, Alex, Stars win tonight, yay or nay?
13:13One to nothing.
13:14I'll take it.
13:16Whatever it looks like.
13:18I like the Nate Newton approach there, Corey.
13:20All you got to do is win one to nothing.
13:22Just got to be one point better.
13:24I think the Stars are a little bit, just a little bit pissed off.
13:30Give me 3-1.
13:31Dude, I'm telling you, man, if you're not watching Shorzy all the way up to Minnesota for this thing, not
13:37you.
13:37I was going to say, sorry, I did not.
13:38If I'm coach, I'm playing it.
13:41Set the tone.
13:42Get out there and light some dudes up.
13:44Hit some dudes.
13:46Hit them for the first two periods.
13:48And then go score some goals.
13:50Everybody loves scoring goals.
13:51That's why you get into this game, so you can get the glory of scoring some goals.
13:55But go hit some dudes.
13:56Make them pay.
13:57Make them wish they didn't even step on the ice last night.
14:00I hope you're right.
14:01From the 8-1-7, they said that the Stars are done and get shut out tonight 4-0.
14:05If they show up with the same body language they had halfway through last game, then yes, they're done.
14:12Now, can I ask one more thing?
14:13If Minnesota scores the first goal, are you going to think the season's over?
14:19Minnesota Wild.
14:20Well, sometimes they win, sometimes they don't, but 24 straight Minnesota Wild playoff games have been won by the first
14:28team that scores.
14:31So, if the Stars fall behind in this, I...
14:33Did we score first in the end game 4?
14:38Jason Robertson.
14:39Did we?
14:40Yeah.
14:41Hmm, okay.
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