There wasn’t much good news for the Dallas Stars, who lost by a 3-0 final score to the Edmonton Oilers in Game 2 of the Western Conference final on Friday, May 23.
The series, which the Stars initially led 1-0, is now knotted at 1-1 with Games 3 and 4 looming in Edmonton.
However, the Stars also suffered an injury to a key player thanks to a controversial play in the third period. Oilers defenseman Darnell Nurse was penalized after taking a two-handed chop to the ankles of Stars forward Roope Hintz, who immediately fell to the ice in pain.
Stars Forward Roope Hintz Was Hurt After A Controversial Slash
Nurse slashed Hintz on the top of his skate, causing the latter to fall to the ice and immediately be attended to by a Stars trainer.
Roope Hintz gets assistance off the ice to the Dallas locker room after this hit from Nurse 😬 pic.twitter.com/VIxWKJR2g7
— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) May 24, 2025
Nurse stood over Hintz for a moment, appearing to talk trash to him before being led away by the officials to the penalty box. He was given a two-minute minor penalty for slashing after the play was reviewed for a potential major penalty.
Meanwhile, Hintz appeared unable to put any weight on his leg as he was helped off the ice by the trainer down the tunnel toward the Dallas dressing room.
Hintz has five goals and six assists so far through 14 games in the Stanley Cup playoffs, helping the Stars reach the Western Conference final for the third consecutive season.
The Stars Were Defeated by the Oilers in Game 2
The Oilers managed to tie the series up at one game apiece thanks to their 3-0 victory at a sold-out American Airlines Center in Dallas.
While the Oilers took far too many penalties in Game 1 that the Stars made them pay for, the Stars took an early ill-advised penalty that immediately resulted in the game’s opening goal.
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins struck just seconds into the power-play, giving the Stars the 1-0 lead in the opening half of the first period. The Oilers then eventually increased their lead to 3-0 thanks to goals just over 60 seconds apart from Brett Kulak and Connor Brown.
While Edmonton goaltender Stuart Skinner struggled in the opening game, he rebounded to pick up what would prove to be his third shutout in the last four games, dating back to the Oilers’ previous series against the Vegas Golden Knights.
Game 3 will be played at Edmonton’s Rogers Place on Sunday afternoon starting at 3:00 p.m. ET. It will be a pivotal matchup for both sides.
