DENVER — Peter DeBoer joked that coaches never really see perfect games, but he said the Dallas Stars' 4-1 win Saturday over the Colorado Avalanche was «as close to a perfect road game» that a team could have.
DeBoer said the Stars' poise went a long way toward achieving that near perfection as they took a 2-1 series lead in the Western Conference semifinals. «Coming in this situation, we knew they were going to come out guns blazing in the first period,» DeBoer said. «You knew their home record.
You knew they had challenged their best players… after last game. We knew we were going to get a lot thrown at us early in that game, and our composure throughout the night I thought was outstanding.» DeBoer's prediction was accurate.
The Avalanche broke through to finish with 11 shots on goal in an opening frame that saw them largely control possession with a 68.1% shot share, according to Natural Stat Trick.