Stanley Cup Playoffs Day 13: Wild eliminate Stars, Ducks burn Oilers

The Stanley Cup Playoffs are back, which means that for the next two months, we’ll get non-stop action as we witness 16 teams get whittled down to the one that will be crowned as the 2026 Stanley Cup champions. Here at Daily Faceoff, we’ll be keeping you in the loop on everything that happens in the playoffs, every day until the Stanley Cup is hoisted in June.

Just two games were on the docket on Thursday night, but they were important as two potential Cup contenders were on the brink of elimination.

Hughes helps Wild bounce Stars

There was a rarified air of anticipation in St. Paul, as the Minnesota Wild looked to knock the Dallas Stars out in Game 6 of the Central Division Semifinal. The wish of the faithful inside Grand Casino Arena was the team’s command, as the Wild pulled out a 5-2 win, clinching the franchise’s first playoff series since 2015.

The Wild came out swinging in the opening moments of the game. Spurred on by the home faithful, Minnesota got on the board first thanks to a quick wrister from star defender Quinn Hughes, his first of the playoffs.

The Wild carried that momentum into a commanding first period. The brothers Foligno beat and battered the Stars all around the ice, and it looked like they were going to run the visitors out of the building. However, Dallas stuck with it and started to claw its way back into the game in the middle stanza.

The Stars received a power play minutes into the second period and converted, thanks to a fantastic tic-tac-toe setup from Matt Duchene and Mikko Rantanen, leading to Wyatt Johnston firing home his fourth goal of the series to tie things at one.

Dallas carried the momentum from the goal into the late stages of the second, as Mavrik Bourque took advantage of Wild goaltender Jesper Wallstedt falling out of position, scoring his first NHL postseason goal with less than four minutes to play in the period.

However, the Wild quickly responded. Less than a minute later, Vladimir Tarasenko was left open to bury a rebound for his first of the series, giving the team some life heading into the intermission.

That goal proved to be a true turning point in the contest. The Wild played with a little more confidence in the third period, leading to Hughes getting a lucky bounce for his second of the game, putting Minnesota back out in front.

With their season on the line, the Stars pushed for the equalizer, but a couple of big saves from Wild netminder Jesper Wallstedt and two empty-net goals from Matt Boldy put the game and the series on ice.

The elimination marks the first time Dallas has lost in the opening round for the first time in four years.

Wallsted turned away 22 shots in the win, including all 10 he faced in the third period. Hughes ended the night with three points, giving him eight on the series. Kirill Kaprizov led the series with nine points.

Jake Oettinger made just 16 saves in the losing effort.

Now, the Wild receive the gracious opportunity to face the Presidents’ Trophy winners, the Colorado Avalanche, in the Central Division Final. It will mark the fourth time the two teams have met in the postseason.

Ducks vanquish Oilers

The Anaheim Ducks had a second opportunity to eliminate the Edmonton Oilers on Thursday night. After missing the chance to get the job done on the road, the Ducks pulled it out on home ice, coming away with a 5-2 victory, clinching the team’s first series win since 2017.

While the Oilers were facing elimination once again, they seemed almost disinterested in the first half of the game, and the Ducks made them pay. Game 4 hero Ryan Poehling broke the ice a little before the halfway mark of the opening frame, tipping in a John Carlson shot, with the puck barely crossing the line, for his fourth of the series. It marked the first time that the Ducks had scored first in the series.

Anaheim continued on the attack, as Chris Kreider potted his first of the playoffs just a few minutes later to put the home side up by a pair. Edmonton finally showed some life with less than five minutes to go in the first, as Connor Murphy tapped in a rebound for his second of the series.

However, just as it looked like the Oilers were going to turn the tide in their favor, Cutter Gauthier, on the power play, put a one-timer past Connor Ingram to restore the two-goal lead.

Anaheim was playing down lockdown hockey for much of the second period, as Edmonton only had four shots on goal through the first half of the frame. Zach Hyman did put the puck in the net with just a few minutes to go in the period, but it was clear that he kicked the puck in, so the goal was disallowed. To add salt to the wound, Troy Terry scored barely a minute later to make it a three-goal game.

Things were looking bleak for Edmonton heading into the third period, though some hope arose after Vasily Podkolzin potted his third of the postseason just over a minute into the frame. However, the minutes continued to tick down, and for every chance the Oilers had, Lukas Dostal was there. An empty-net goal from Leo Carlsson sealed the win.

It’s the first time the Oilers have been eliminated in the first round since the North Division Semifinals in 2021.

Dostal made 25 saves in the win, while Ingram was credited with 26 stops in the losing effort. Terry and Kreider each had a goal and two assists for Anaheim in Game 6.

Despite being eliminated, Oilers forward Leon Draisaitl potted three goals and 10 points, currently leading all postseason skaters. Ducks defenseman Jackson LaCombe led his team with eight points in the series.