Afterwords: A Third Period for the Ages

May 11, 2024; Denver, Colorado, USA; Dallas Stars center Logan Stankoven (11) celebrates his goal with defenseman Chris Tanev (3) in the first period against the Colorado Avalanche in game three of the second round of the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY SportsOnce again, my original point of focus for this Afterwords looked much different after the first two periods.

Assuming the status quo had remained the same, the plan was to heap mountains of praise onto Jake Oettinger. He has been sharp all postseason long, yet he had not yet had one of those games. You know, the kind where you have absolute no business winning, giving up scoring…