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It’s a tough time for Mikko Rantanen: the Stars need him to wake up
Félix Forget
It’s a tough time for Mikko Rantanen: the Stars need him to wake up
Credit: Getty Images
Mikko Rantanen is having a rather special series with Dallas. The former Avalanche forward was slow to get going against his former club in the first round… but he had a monstrous offensive explosion at the end of the series to drag his team into the second round.

His performance in Game 7 against the Avalanche was really something.

And at the start of the series against the Jets, he still had it in the tank. Overall, he had 17 points in six games, including the last three against Colorado and the first three against Winnipeg.

Interestingly, since then, Rantanen has become ordinary again. In fact, in his last five games, he’s scored just two points.

And we’re talking about two assists: he hasn’t hit the target once in his last five games.

So Rantanen is having a rather strange series: he’s amassed 20 points since the start of the series, which is an NHL record (tied with Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl)… but 17 of them have come in a six-game sequence.

He has just three points in his other nine games… and that’s not good enough.

And with Roope Hintz injured last night (no word yet on the severity of the injury), the Stars need their biggest offensive star to step up even more. Because on the other side, the Oilers have two who are ready to go all out…

The good news for the Stars, though, is that Rantanen showed earlier in these playoffs that he’s capable of turning on the machine after a few slow games. But now, the big-money acquisition is going to have to give it his all… or else beating the Oilers won’t be easy.


Overtime

– Change in front of the Hurricanes net. Jesperi Kotkaniemi returns to the lineup.

– Sam Reinhart, injured, will not play tonight. He is being evaluated on a daily basis.

– Great read.

– They could win gold at this tournament for the first time since 1933.

– Interesting.

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