The Dallas Stars lost to the Edmonton Oilers 4-1 on Wednesday in Game 4 of the Western Conference Final. They are now down 3-1 and will be playing for their playoff lives back at home in Game 5. Mikko Rantanen has not scored a goal for the Stars so far in this series, a sharp fall off from his dominant first-round series against the Colorado Avalanche. The forward spoke with reporters about his goal-scoring drought, per The Athletic's Pierre LeBrun.
“Yeah, you know, I try to help and haven’t been able to do it as much this series as would be needed to win games,” Rantanen said. “So, I will try to reset myself tomorrow and try to find some keys to get a bounce or two and try to help us win a game.”
Article Continues BelowThe Stars were on the Oilers early, but still could not get the first goal. Stuart Skinner stuffed them in the first period despite their 16 shots on goal. “The start of the game tonight reminded me of the second period in Game 3. We were on them, creating chances almost every shift, and they still get the first goal. That’s the frustrating part. But this is not the time of the year to get frustrated. You have to reset and go back at it,” Rantanen said.
Rantanen has had one of the most unique seasons in recent NHL history. He started with the Colorado Avalanche, who traded him to the Carolina Hurricanes amid slow contract negotiations. That was a poor fit, so Rantanen was traded to the Dallas Stars, where he immediately signed an eight-year extension. Then, he scored a Game 7 hat trick for Dallas to eliminate Colorado. But the last seven games have not been kind to him. The Stars need Rantanen to turn it up to avoid elimination in Game 5.