Stars and Oilers Clash Again: A Thrilling Western Conference Finals Showdown
The excitement is palpable as the puck drops Wednesday night in Dallas, marking the start of a familiar face-off in the Western Conference Finals of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Yep, you guessed it—the Stars are going head-to-head with the Edmonton Oilers for the second year in a row.
Now, while a lot of things are pretty much the same—like both head coaches, the goaltenders, and of course, the Oilers' superstar duo of Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl—there's a significant twist this time around. The Stars made a big splash with their mid-season acquisition of Mikko Rantanen, and he’s been a game-changer.
Rantanen is currently leading the NHL playoffs with a whopping 19 points, just edging out McDavid, who has 17, and Draisaitl, who’s not far behind with 16. The Oilers are making their third trip to the Western Finals in just four seasons, having come up short last year in a nail-biting seven-game series against Florida.
Interestingly, there’s a bit of a personal touch in this matchup, too. On one side, you’ve got defenseman Cody Ceci, who was traded to the Stars from San Jose mid-season and previously spent three seasons with the Oilers. On the flip side, veteran defenseman John Klingberg has played 10 playoff games with the Oilers after just 11 regular-season games, marking his fourth team since starting his NHL journey with the Stars from 2015 to 2022.
With McDavid, Draisaitl, and Rantanen in the mix, this series boasts three of the top scorers in NHL playoff history. McDavid ranks third on that list, averaging 1.58 points per game, while Draisaitl sits at fifth with 1.46. Rantanen, in his first postseason with Dallas after spending the last seven years with Colorado, is seventh at 1.28.
And let’s not forget about the all-time leader, Wayne Gretzky, who averaged an insane 1.84 points in his 208 playoff games. He won four Stanley Cups in a five-season stretch with the Oilers back in the '80s, and just this past weekend, he was spotted in the Stars locker room celebrating their second-round victory.
On the Stars' side, goalie Jake Oettinger is making waves in his fourth consecutive postseason, having already won six playoff series. He’s got his eyes set on the Stanley Cup, and it’s clear he’s ready to give it his all.
"I feel like he is dialed in. I feel like he's on a bit of a mission here," said Stars head coach Pete DeBoer. "After coming up short two years in a row, he’s determined to break through this time." Oettinger boasts a .919 save percentage and a 2.47 goals-against average, which is pretty impressive.
As the Western Conference Finals kick off, CBS News Texas is gearing up with crews both inside and outside the American Airlines Center for a special streaming event starting at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday. You can catch all the action in the player above, or tune in via the CBS News app, Pluto TV, Samsung TV Plus, or the Roku Channel.
