Stars Defeat Avalanche in Double Overtime in Game 6 to Reach Western Conference Final
**By Ryan Boulding
NHL.com Independent Correspondent
2:46 PM**
**DENVER** -- Matt Duchene scored at 11:42 of the second overtime, lifting the Dallas Stars to a 2-1 victory over the Colorado Avalanche in Game 6 of the Western Conference Second Round at Ball Arena on Friday.
“I don't even know what [I did],” Duchene said about his reaction. “I know I ended up on my knees like last time I got one in overtime, but I have no idea, to be honest with you. It's just elation, right?”
Joe Pavelski found the loose puck during a net-front scramble and sent a backhand pass to Duchene, who fired over a sprawling Alexandar Georgiev from just below the right face-off circle.
“From what I remember, it was a little give-and-go. 'Dutchy' made a nice play to me. I got a stick on it,” Pavelski said. “It's just a battle. I caught ‘Dutch’ kind of out of the corner of my eye on the side and just tried to get it out there. For me, you're battling and you know it gets out to him, and I just got an eye on the net. It was nice to see it go in.”
DAL@COL R2, Gm6: Duchene roofs rebound in 2OT, wins series for Stars
The Stars will face either the Vancouver Canucks or the Edmonton Oilers in the Western Conference Final. Vancouver leads that series 3-2 heading into Game 6 on Saturday.
This will be Dallas’ second consecutive trip to the conference final. The Stars lost to the eventual Stanley Cup champion Vegas Golden Knights in six games in 2023.
Mason Marchment nearly secured the win for Dallas with an apparent goal at 12:31 of the first overtime on a wrist shot from the slot, but it was immediately waved off due to goaltender interference against Duchene. The call was upheld after video review.
“It’s indescribable. You’re so happy and see all the boys hopping over the bench, and then I look over and he’s kind of waving it off,” Marchment said. “The explanation that I got was ‘Dutchy’s’ [back side] was over the line. His feet were outside, but his [back side] was over the line. That’s the explanation I got.
“That’s hard. That’s a momentum swing. Sometimes it can be a huge break for them. I think they maybe did push a little bit after that. We got a good break at the end there, squeaks out to ‘Dutch’ and he scores.”
Jamie Benn scored the tying goal early in the third period, and Jake Oettinger made 29 saves for the Stars, who are the No. 1 seed from the Central Division.
“Our team comes in here and wins three road games against the best home team in the NHL,” said Dallas coach Pete DeBoer. “Just fantastic character to be able to do that against that team in this building. What a gauntlet. Colorado was a more rested team after their first round. I just couldn't be prouder of our group. I thought everybody dug deep, and our depth carried us through.
“That gave us the spark because we've got a mix of older and younger guys, but they were just fantastic. It's hard to believe that with a gauntlet like that, you're only halfway there. But we're going to enjoy the time off, and get ready for the next round.”
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