As Jake Oettinger led the Stars on the ice at 6:59 p.m., Chris and Kelly Oettinger watched from their suite in the American Airlines Center. Their son was moments away from making his lifelong dream a reality.
“Excitement. Nerves. Kind of got choked up when they introduced him from Lakeville, Minnesota, which kind of brings it all home,” Chris said. “We’re here with friends and people that know him and love him, so there’s a lot of emotions that goes with it.”
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Jake’s parents were joined by his girlfriend, Kennedi, her father and a couple of other family friends. Roughly 30 hours prior, Chris, who talks to his son daily, got a text from Jake: “I’m playing tomorrow.” Kelly, working from home, was on a Zoom call when Chris wrote the big news on a notepad to show her from the other side of the screen. The two quickly got busy, arranging child care for their eight-year-old daughter and six-year-old son and booking the first flight out of Minneapolis Thursday morning. They landed in Dallas at 10:30 a.m. and checked into The W hotel at 11:15 a.m.
“I’m just excited for him,” said Kelly, eyes welling up with tears. “This is his dream. I’m a very emotional person, but I’m just really proud of him.”
Giving the 22-year-old rookie, widely regarded as the future of the organization in the crease, a start on Thursday was the plan set in place by goaltending coach, Jeff Reese. The Stars were in the comfortable confines of the AAC, playing a lesser opponent in the Detroit Red Wings and had a 3-0-0 season cushion built up by Anton Khudobin.
“We certainly didn’t want to let him sit here too long,” Stars head coach Rick Bowness said. “He’s got to play. He’s going to play games, as we talked about before the season started.”
It turned out to be the perfect situation to play Oettinger. Dallas had come out to sluggish starts in the first three games, relying on Khudobin to hold strong in the back end. On Thursday, they came out aggressive offensively and sound defensively, maintaining that pace for the duration of a 7-3 win.
“We didn’t give up very many scoring opportunities. Defensively we were very solid,” Bowness said. “The ones that went in, (Oettinger) had absolutely zero chance on. He made the saves that he had to make. He looked very comfortable in there, very confident in there. The guys played very well in front of him … I thought he did a great job for us.”
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The Stars did a great job to make sure the burden didn’t fall on Oettinger to win the game with heroics. He stopped 20 of 23 shots by the Red Wings while the Stars in front of him blocked 21 shots. Oettinger moved around the crease comfortably and didn’t allow heavy traffic right in front of him to throw him off.
“He looks very much like I’m used to, so it makes me feel comfortable that he’s where he should be,” Chris said. “There was a time – I don’t know if it was (Joe) Pavelski or (Denis) Gurianov but after one of the first couple of saves – they kind of gave him a little tap on the pads, and it chokes you up because I know how much he wants to contribute and wants to win.”
Oettinger said he had some nerves throughout the day, but things felt normal once he got on the ice. In the first period, Oettinger only saw five shots and stopped all five of them. In the second period, he allowed his first NHL goal. At that moment, Oettinger fell back on the lessons he’s learned in training camp and last year in the Edmonton bubble as he watched Khudobin and Ben Bishop.
“I’m learning from two of the best guys in the league in Ben Bishop and Anton Khudobin. Both of those guys are just so good at resetting, mentally,” Oettinger said. “Just being able to watch Dobby so closely in the bubble and obviously now is just an invaluable experience for me. He never gets rattled. He’s just out there playing and having fun. Goals are going to go in; that’s part of the game and part of the position. The really good goalies and the ones that stick around for a long time are the ones that can let one in and you won’t be able to tell after that.”
For Chris and Kelly, the thought that their son is teammates with the likes of Bishop and Jamie Benn still hasn’t set in. Big milestones like this one make them reflect back to other stops along this journey, such as getting drafted in the first round or making his AHL debut.
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“It’s like, what are we actually doing? I can’t believe this is actually happening,” Chris said. “He’s ready for this, mentally and emotionally. I don’t know if I am, but at the same time, this is what you dream of.”
Chris and Kelly have been through a number of these moments, from Oettinger’s experience with USA hockey, his years at Boston University and then in the AHL with the Texas Stars.
“It’s a really cool experience to see your son living a dream and see it come to life when you’re in the stands and hear people cheering for him,” Chris said. “You actually get to watch the game so it’s a little more relaxing…”
“No, it’s not relaxing,” Kelly interjected.
After morning skate, Bowness downplayed the pressure of Oettinger’s first start, reminding everybody that regardless of how the night went, the young goaltender would play many more games this season. Oettinger, while acknowledging the night was a “dream come true,” understood that this was just the first of many for him, not only this season but for years to come.
“I’m just happy to get the first one behind and continue to build confidence every time I’m in there,” Oettinger said. “Thankful the guys played so well in front of me and made my job really easy tonight. If we keep playing like that, we’re going to keep getting wins.”
1. The Stars went up 4-1 in the third period and with about 13 minutes left in the game, it looked like they might be able to cruise to their fourth consecutive victory to open the season. Instead, the Red Wings scored two goals in about six minutes to come within striking distance, down 4-3 with 6:56 left in the game.
That’s when Miro Heiskanen, who had already been the best player on the ice Thursday night, made the play of the game. Alexander Radulov found Heiskanen streaking up the left side, who instantly saw Dellandrea in front of the net and delivered a perfect pass:
It was Dellandrea’s first NHL goal, a fitting reward for one of the pleasant surprises of the season so far. The reaction to the goal was pretty great.
2. This must have been a very gratifying game for Jim Nill to watch. The Stars general manager previously helped the Red Wings to four Stanley Cup Championships as part of their front office in 1997, 1998, 2002 and 2008. On Thursday, against his former team, Nill’s current body of work was on full display. Dellandrea, a 2018 first-round pick, had a goal and an assist while 2015 first-rounder Denis Gurianov reminded the masses that he’s not just a sniper from the right circle but also has blazing speed, as shown on his net-collapsing goal. The 2016 draft provided a couple of decent finds in later rounds, with fourth-rounder Rhett Gardner holding down the fort in the lineup and fifth-rounder Nicholas Caamano putting together a stellar game in which he almost scored. Of course, the 2017 draft headlined the entire evening between Heiskanen’s phenomenal night and Oettinger playing well and earning a win in his first NHL start.
A night of firsts for the first-round picks 🥳 pic.twitter.com/LJG7LIjW1c
— Dallas Stars (@DallasStars) January 29, 2021
3. Tanner Kero probably wasn’t on many people’s minds when the season began. The 28-year-old spent a few years in the NHL with the Chicago Blackhawks, so he’s not exactly a prospect. However, injuries have forced Bowness to dig deep on his depth chart, and from the moment Kero took the ice on Sunday, Bowness has liked what he’s seen enough to keep him in the lineup.
Kero had a career-high two assists on Thursday, but it was his defensive play that kickstarted a sequence ending with a Joe Pavelski goal and a 1-0 Stars lead.
4. Speaking of Pavelski, that goal was his ninth point of the season, making him the oldest player in NHL history to record nine points in his first four games. Whether it’s a fountain of youth or just more comfort within the Stars’ system in his second season, Pavelski is a big reason why Dallas has been able to weather a plethora of injuries to the forwards. Another veteran forward hitting a milestone Thursday evening was Andrew Cogliano, who scored a hard-working goal for his 400th career point.
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5. Justin Dowling is a player every team would love to have but doesn’t. He’s a depth forward who can do everything and play anywhere. He’s grown accustomed to being the healthy scratch in the 13th forward role, but he was centering the fourth line earlier this season. With Jamie Benn still out, Dowling has gone up to the top line and played well with Jason Dickinson and Gurianov. His work on Gurianov’s goal was particularly important.
7. The Stars placed Benn on IR, retroactive to Jan. 22. He’s been skating for the past three days, including two morning skates and a practice. He’ll be eligible to play in Carolina on Saturday, and he’s expected to do so.
Blake Comeau is working his way back from his extended absence due to falling in the COVID-19 protocol. Joel Kiviranta remains on IR and is eligible to return on Saturday. Roope Hintz was a game-time decision but did not play.
8. With all of those absences, here is what the Stars lineup looked like:
Jason Dickinson — Justin Dowling — Denis Gurianov
Tanner Kero — Joe Pavelski — Alexander Radulov
Andrew Cogliano — Radek Faksa — Ty Dellandrea
Nicholas Caamano — Rhett Gardner — Joel L’Esperance
Esa Lindell — John Klingberg
Jamie Oleksiak — Miro Heiskanen
Andrej Sekera — Mark Pysyk
Jake Oettinger
The Red Wings countered with this:
Tyler Bertuzzi — Dylan Larkin — Mathias Brome
Bobby Ryan — Vladislav Namestnikov — Anthony Mantha
Michael Rasmussen — Luke Glendening — Givani Smith
Taro Hirose — Valtteri Filppula — Darren Helm
Patrik Nemeth — Filip Hronek
Marc Staal — Troy Stecher
Danny DeKeyser — Christian Djoos
Jonathan Bernier
9. The Stars debuted their new blackout jerseys. I never thought they were bad, but I was still pleasantly surprised when I saw them in person. They looked “cool” and “sick,” as Gurianov described them at morning skate and were not sore on the eyes. I didn’t think they looked bad on TV, either, but they definitely look better in person.
Rick Bowness’ wife bought a tie for the coach to match the jerseys. Judy did well.
the tie is perfect, mrs. bones. https://t.co/xevrKgYwm2 pic.twitter.com/sDxXg2Pcye
— Mackenzie Friedman (@mackfriedman) January 29, 2021
10. The Dallas Stars are 4-0-0 for the first time since 2010 and the last undefeated team remaining in the NHL this season. They’re off on Friday before embarking on a four-game road trip through Carolina and Columbus.
(Photo: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports)
Saad Yousuf is a staff writer covering the Dallas Cowboys and Dallas Stars. He also works at 96.7/1310 The Ticket in Dallas after five years at ESPN Dallas radio. Prior to The Athletic, Saad covered the Cowboys for WFAA, the Mavericks for Mavs.com and a variety of sports at The Dallas Morning News, ESPN.com and SB Nation. Follow Saad on Twitter @SaadYousuf126
