The Dallas Stars played a better hockey game in Game 1, but couldn’t convert on their chances in a 5-1 loss against the Colorado Avalanche at American Airlines Center on Saturday.

What a scene

Yes, Stanley Cup Playoff hockey is amazing. But before the puck even drops, the scene is spectacular.

I am a sucker for pregame hype. Whenever I go to a sporting event, I force my family, fiancée, or friends to get there early so I can watch the intro video before the home team comes out. Doesn’t matter who it is, I will even get psyched for the New York Jets. Well, maybe not psyched, but you get the point.

Game 1 of the playoffs in Dallas lived up to the hype. The crowd was inside the AAC early, they were loud, and the pregame presentation had me ready to jump over the boards.

On-ice graphics, lights, light-up wristbands, loud noises, and sharks with freaking laser beams attached to their heads. Or just lasers, one or the other.

Playoff hockey is back in Texas, and it is freakin awesome.

What did the Stars do to the hockey gods?

The hockey gods are real, folks. And they were out there in this one tonight… just not in favor of the guys in green.

In the second period — after multiple excellent scoring chances for the Stars, Artturi Lehkonen “scored” the opening goal of the series on a wild sequence and eventual floating kick to the far post past Jake Oettinger.

It was ruled a goal because the kicking motion was not “deliberate”, which is how the rule is listed by the NHL. It was a kick, just not an intentional one… which makes it even more frustrating.

But that wasn’t the end of it. After Roope Hintz took a double minor for high-sticking Nathan MacKinnon, the Avs scored another flukey goal to push the lead to 2-0.

This one was not nearly as wild and lucky as the first, but it is still a partially blocked shot that finds its way in about 10% of the time. One of those times was tonight.

As I write this, the Stars trail 2-0 after 40 minutes. I hope to add more here about how the Stars got some puck luck later in the game. But will I?

Well, no. Because just before Colorado scored to extend their lead to 3-1 in the third, Mackenzie Blackwood made a save with his ribcage or even his back on Mason Marchment all alone in front.

Wasn’t in the cards tonight. The Stars hope to create some of their own puck luck in Game 2.

Dallas has now dropped its last eight Game 1s (last win was the 2020 Stanley Cup Final vs Tampa Bay).

This is going to be an awesome series

What a game tonight. I know it ended up looking ugly and a loss is always tough to swallow, but it was a really fun hockey game to watch and a good step in the right direction for Dallas.

The Stars looked to play more of their style of hockey. They limited defensive mistakes, pushed and pressured Colorado in their end, and were one conversion away from tying the game in the third period.

“It’s probably the best game we’ve played in three or four weeks,” Stars coach Pete DeBoer said. “[I] thought we were pretty solid.”

It is not a must-win on Monday, but it certainly feels like heading to Colorado down 0-2 on the back of nine straight losses (0-5-2 to finish the regular season) is a hole that would prove very challenging to climb out of.

Overall, Game 1 left me excited to watch the rest of this series. There was a ton of speed, some big hits, and plenty of excitement for the very loud sellout crowd inside the AAC.

Quotable

Pete DeBoer on the message ahead of Game 2:

“We’ve got to build on that… work for some more bounces around the net, stay out of the penalty box…. build on a lot of the good things we did tonight.”