It’s about Ty: Dellandrea nets 2 as Stars stay alive
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Ryan S. Clark, NHL reporter
LAS VEGAS — A healthy scratch to start the series, Ty Dellandrea scored two pivotal, third-period goals in the Dallas Stars‘ 4-2 victory on Saturday against the Vegas Golden Knights in Game 5 of the Western Conference finals.
The win kept the Stars’ season alive for at least two more days. Game 6 is Monday night in Dallas.
Dellandrea’s winning and insurance goals also came with another accomplishment in that it guaranteed Stars captain Jamie Benn will return for Game 6 after being suspended for the past two games for a cross-check on Golden Knights captain Mark Stone in Game 3.
“It’s a lot of desperation, we have a lot to play for here,” Dellandrea said. “Our group’s really come together and leaned on one another. Guys have stepped up. … We’ve really been leaning on one another and playing for a lot here. It’s been a group effort for sure.”
Stars defenseman Thomas Harley set up Dellandrea’s goal by breaking up a Golden Knights’ entry with his stick, passing it to Joel Kiviranta, who then played a diagonal cross-ice pass to Dellandrea for what was a 1-on-3 rush.
Creating time and space was a challenge, yet Dellandrea temporarily had both right when he launched a wrist shot from the top of the right faceoff circle. Even then? His window started to close when Golden Knights defenseman Alex Pietrangelo tried closing down on the shot only to have the puck deflect off his stick and sneak just underneath Adin Hill‘s glove to give the Stars a 3-2 lead with 9:27 remaining in the third period.
Barely 90 seconds later, Dellandrea scored again to practically guarantee Game 6.
Golden Knights defenseman Zach Whitecloud was behind the net when he tried playing the puck off the boards that led to Stars forward Max Domi scooping a loose puck that he tried throwing on net as he was being pushed from behind. Dellandrea recovered the rebound and lifted a shot over Hill to double the lead with 7:58 remaining.
Dellandrea said after Game 4 that he’s been more mindful about utilizing his shot which led to him referencing a scoring chance he felt he should have converted in Game 5.
“It shows how special you are when you get taken out and it’s he didn’t make it about him,” Stars goaltender Jake Oettinger said of Dellandrea, who is one of his closest friends on the team. “It’s all about the team. He wanted us to win. When you get your opportunity to step up and that’s what he did. I’m so proud of him. I tell him to shoot it all the time. He’s got a great shot, so, I’m happy it was him.”
Finding secondary and tertiary scoring became a priority for the Stars considering Benn was suspended and that Evgenii Dadonov suffered a lower-body injury early in Game 3 that has led to him missing the last two games.
Dellandrea’s goals helped fill that void. So did the second-period goal by Luke Glendening, who has now scored two goals in 16 playoff games after scoring three goals in 70 regular-season games.
Now add what Jason Robertson has achieved to this point for the Stars in the conference final. A 100-point scorer in the regular season, he didn’t score in the second round. But in the conference final, he’s become one of the Stars’ most consistent players. He scored the first game-tying goal, which means he’s accounted for five of the 12 goals the Stars have scored against the Golden Knights in this round.
Those contributions add to the composite of how the Stars are among the deepest teams in the playoffs. They’ve had 16 players score at least one goal in the postseason — the same number as the Golden Knights.
It’s another reason why Benn’s return has a chance to be crucial. It gives the Stars a forward who scored 33 goals in the regular season and has added to those totals with 11 points in 16 playoff games before his suspension.
“Our whole thought process was we win two games, and we get him back,” Glendening said of Benn. “[We] didn’t want his season to end that way and wanted to give him the opportunity to play again.”
Benn’s return for Game 6 on Monday could also lead to one of two outcomes.
Either the Golden Knights will win the series and advance to the Stanley Cup Final to face the Florida Panthers.
Or the Stars will tie the series and return for Game 7 with a chance to advance to their second Stanley Cup Final in four seasons.
Yet what makes the Stars’ recent accomplishments even more intriguing is the context that comes with teams that have trailed in a series. The Panthers rallied from a 3-1 hole in the first round to upset the Boston Bruins before they eventually punched their ticket to what is just the second Cup final appearance in franchise history.
And there’s also a bit of the personal experience Stars coach Pete DeBoer has when it comes to mounting a comeback. DeBoer was in charge of the San Jose Sharks when they fell into a 3-1 hole in the 2018-19 playoffs before they won the series in seven games.
The opponent? It was the Golden Knights.
“I don’t think you can compare any series to any other series,” DeBoer said. “But I know our group and we weren’t happy about being in the hole we were in, and they’ve decided to do something about it. Now, we’re rolling.”
SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Jeremiyah Love tied the Notre Dame record with a 98-yard touchdown run, Riley Leonard added two more scores and the Fighting Irish shut down the highest-scoring team in the College Football Playoff, overwhelming Indiana 27-17 on Friday night.
The seventh-seeded Fighting Irish (12-1) won their 11th straight — and their first playoff victory. They’ll face second-seeded Georgia in the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 1. Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman got the biggest win of his three-year career by extending his Irish record to 12 victories over ranked teams in three seasons.
“There’s no place like Notre Dame,” Leonard said. “This is why you come here, this is why I came here — to play for a championship.”
Tenth-seeded Indiana (11-2) completed a magical season by finishing with its second fewest points this season on a cold, brisk night in the first CFP game ever played on a campus site. Both of the Hoosiers’ losses came to top-five opponents. Indiana set a single-season school record for wins but still hasn’t won at Notre Dame since 1898.
Notre Dame took control on its third offensive play when Love scooted around the right side of Indiana’s defense, eluded one tackle and sprinted down the sideline to make it 7-0. He matched Josh Adams’ longest run in school history, set in 2015 against Wake Forest. It was also the longest run in CFP history.
“It’s all about finding a way to get another week,” Freeman said. “It wasn’t easy. But we’re going to enjoy this one and we’ll get another one.”
Love finished with eight carries for 108 yards despite appearing to reinjure his left knee later in the first half.
Indiana never recovered after Notre Dame made it 14-0 early in the second quarter.
Leonard’s 1-yard TD run late in the fourth gave him 15 this season to break Notre Dame’s season record by a quarterback.
Indiana scored both of its touchdowns in the final 1:27.
Notre Dame made it 14-0 on Leonard’s 5-yard TD pass to Jayden Thomas early in the second quarter. The Irish settled for three more field goals, and the defense took care of the rest — allowing just one field goal.
Leonard was 23 of 32 with 201 yards and one interception. Notre Dame receiver Jordan Faison caught seven passes for 89 yards.
Indiana quarterback Kurtis Rourke turned in another poor game against a top defense, finishing 20 of 33 with 215 yards, with two TDs and one interception, and the Hoosiers rushed for just 63 yards.
“They took it to us,” Indiana coach Curt Cignetti said. “They won, they deserve to win. We didn’t play our best game, but they had a lot to do with that tonight.”
Notre Dame: The Irish have relied on the running game and defense all season — and it was that combination that gave Notre Dame the first playoff win in school history. It may need more out of its passing game to win its first national championship since 1988.
Notre Dame: Plays Georgia in the Sugar Bowl on New Year’s Day.
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Alden Gonzalez, ESPN Staff Writer
The Houston Astros and free-agent first baseman Christian Walker have agreed to a three-year, $60 million contract, sources confirmed to ESPN amid multiple reports Friday.
The deal is pending a physical exam, a source told ESPN.
The addition of Walker in all likelihood marks the end of Alex Bregman‘s tenure in Houston, not to mention the Astros’ ill-fated attempts to pry Nolan Arenado from the St. Louis Cardinals. Walker manning first base for the next three years means Isaac Paredes, the 25-year-old corner infielder who was recently acquired from the Chicago Cubs in the Kyle Tucker trade, will probably be Bregman’s replacement at third base.
Walker, 33, is widely regarded as one of the sport’s best defensive first basemen and will also provide some power to the middle of the Astros’ lineup. He slashed .250/.332/.481 with 95 home runs and 281 RBIs with the Arizona Diamondbacks over the last three seasons while accumulating 10.8 FanGraphs wins above replacement, sixth-most among first basemen.
First base had been a conundrum in Houston over these last three seasons, one the high-priced Jose Abreu could not solve. Astros first basemen combined for a .651 OPS last season, fifth-lowest in the majors. Walker, a three-time Gold Glove Award winner, will provide a major boost at that position — particularly as a right-handed hitter in Daikin Park, which features a short left-field fence.
The Astros still need help in their outfield after parting with Tucker one year before he’s scheduled to become a free agent. And Bregman, the heart and soul of an Astros franchise that won two championships and made seven straight appearances in the American League Championship Series dating back to his first full season in the big leagues, must choose a new destination.
The New York Yankees, who expressed interest in Walker this offseason, could be a landing spot for Bregman. So might the Boston Red Sox, Toronto Blue Jays or Detroit Tigers, the latter of which is led by Bregman’s former manager, A.J. Hinch.
Astros general manager Dana Brown expressed optimism in bringing Bregman back throughout the offseason, but owner Jim Crane would not meet the $200 million-plus asking price of Bregman’s agent, Scott Boras, prompting an initial pivot to Arenado — before he utilized his no-trade clause to stay in St. Louis — and an agreement with Walker.
Walker declined the D-backs’ qualifying offer earlier this month. By signing him, the Astros, a team that exceeded the luxury-tax threshold last season, will give up their second- and fifth-round picks in the upcoming draft, as well as $1 million from their international-spending pool. The Astros will get back a fourth-round pick once Bregman signs with another team, a development that now feels inevitable.
In the aftermath of their loss to the Tigers in the wild-card round earlier this fall, longtime Astros second baseman Jose Altuve spoke passionately about the importance of bringing Bregman back, saying: “We’re not going to be the same organization without him.”
In many ways, the Walker signing signals a new chapter.
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