Stanley Cup Playoffs Day 29: Stars advance to West Final after emotional win against Jets

The Stanley Cup Playoffs are back, which means that for the next two months, we’ll get non-stop exciting action in the NHL as we witness history in another team looking to win a championship. Here at Daily Faceoff, we’ll be keeping you in the loop of everything that happened in the playoffs, every day until the Stanley Cup is hoisted in June.

Harley scores in OT, Stars eliminate Jets in 6

On an emotional day in the hockey world, Thomas Harley scored in overtime and the Dallas Stars advanced to the Western Conference Final for the third straight season, defeating the Winnipeg Jets 2-1 in Game 6 and eliminating their Central Division rival.

Mark Scheifele opened the scoring for the Jets, just hours after it was announced that his father died unexpectedly. Early in the second period, Stars’ netminder Jake Oettinger stopped a Kyle Connor shot, but the rebound found Scheifele’s stick, where he scored his fifth of the postseason to give Winnipeg a 1-0 lead.

Five minutes later, Sam Steel took a shot from the slot and went bar down on Connor Hellebuyck, tying the game 1-1.

Late in the second frame, Josh Morrissey got tangled up with Mikko Rantanen and felt awkwardly, forcing the Jets’ defender to head to the locker room. He would not return.

With the game still tied for the first 19:45 of the third period, Steel was on a breakaway when Scheifele tripped the Stars’ forward, stopping a potential game-winning goal but getting called for a trip. The Stars didn’t score in regulation, but they started overtime with a man advantage.

Just 1:33 into overtime, Tyler Seguin found Hartley out front, who one-timed a shot past Hellebuyck, and it was game, set, match for the Dallas, who punched their ticket to the third round and eliminated Winnipeg in the process.

The Stars will now face the Edmonton Oilers in the Western Conference Final for the second straight year. Game 1 will be in Dallas on Wednesday, with puck drop at 8 p.m ET and 6 p.m. MT.

As for the Jets, the loss ends their 2024-25 campaign, which saw the team finish with a franchise-best record of 56-22-4 and 116 points, clinching the Presidents’ Trophy for the first time in team history.