On Thursday, May 29, in Game 5 of the Western Conference Final against the Edmonton Oilers, Dallas Stars head coach Pete DeBoer controversially pulled goaltender Jake Oettinger from the ice just 7:09 into the first period after the netminder gave up two goals on the only two shots he faced.
The Stars lost the game 6-3 and were eliminated from the playoffs that night, losing the series 4-1. However, Oettinger quashed the rumors of a rift with DeBoer during the team’s end-of-season press conference on Saturday, May 31.
Jake Oettinger Shares Honest Feelings About Being Pulled Early
Oettinger told reporters that, while being pulled early in a must-win game was disappointing, it wouldn’t define his relationship with his coach.
“I was on the screen a lot more than I should be,” Oettinger said. “I don’t know why they kept showing me, like I haven’t moved in half hour. It just sucks. It’s embarrassing. Anytime you get pulled, doesn’t matter if it’s playoffs or it’s regular season, you just want to go right off the ice and crawl into your bed and not talk to anyone.
“I think for me, just the whole experience, I’m going to learn from it and it’s going to help me grow and be a better person and better goalie,” Oettinger said.
“My job is to stop the puck, and I feel like I’m one of the best in the world when I’m doing that, so that’s all I’m going to focus on. All the extra stuff is just extra stuff to me,” he added.
“It sucked. It was embarrassing.”
Jake Oettinger speaks on being pulled in Game 5 pic.twitter.com/puDLZoMvLD
— Spittin’ Chiclets (@spittinchiclets) May 31, 2025
DeBoer explained his reasoning for pulling Oettinger in the postgame press conference, citing the goalie’s poor track record against the Oilers: “It was partly to spark our team and wake them up, and partly knowing that status quo had not been working, and that’s a pretty big sample size,” DeBoer had said.
However, at the team’s end-of-season availability on Saturday, DeBoer was complimentary of the young player.
“No one is a bigger fan of Jake Oettinger than me, as a person or a goalie,” DeBoer told reporters, while also stating that he and Oettinger hadn’t spoken since Game 5. “I think Jake is the best young goaltender in the league. But that doesn’t mean there’s not a learning curve and growth. And that’s all part of the journey.”
Oettinger has been at the crease for the Stars’ three straight exits at the Western Conference final stage. This was their second consecutive elimination by Edmonton. The goalie was 1-3 in the first four games of the series with a 3.55 goals-against average and a .869 save percentage. However, his teammates spoke out in his support.
“We were not ready. We were not helping Jake at all on the first two goals. That’s on us and not on Jake,” Stars’ recent acquisition Mikko Rantanen said.
