Blues Beat Stars 6-1, Advance To West Final

The St. Louis Blues defeated the Dallas Stars 6-1 in Game 7 on Wednesday night to win their series 4-3 and advance to the Western Conference finals for the first time since 2001.

Blues Beat Stars 6-1, Advance To West Final

Linemates Robby Fabbri, Paul Stastny and Troy Brouwer each scored one goal and assisted on each other’s tallies.

The Blues, who are in the playoffs for the 40th time and are pursuing their first Stanley Cup, will next host either the Nashville Predators or the San Jose Sharks in the Western Conference finals.

The Predators and Sharks will face off in the deciding Game 7 on Thursday night.

Captain David Backes and Patrik Berglund also scored goals for St. Louis, who earned its third road victory in this series. Vladimir Tarasenko scored the final, empty-net goal with 4:40 remaining.

“It’s taken a lot of hard work from these guys. It’s taken a group that has really bound together when we’ve had our backs against the walls,” Backes said. “We know we’re one of the last four teams standing, and we’re halfway to our ultimate goal. We still have some work to do. It’s a good feeling in this room right now.”

Patrick Eaves netted the lone goal for the Stars, who also lost to the Blues 6-1 in Game 3 of this series.

Brian Elliott returned as goalie for the Blues and finished with 31 saves. Elliott had been pulled late in the first period of Game 6, which Dallas won 3-2, after allowing three goals in seven shots. Wednesday night also marked the Stars’ first Game 7 at home since 2000, and first in the American Airlines Center in Dallas.

This was the second time this postseason that the Blues won their series in seven games. They topped the defending Stanley Cup champion Chicago Blackhawks 3-2 on Brouwer’s winning goal in the Game 7 clincher at home.

In Game 7, the Blues dominated after the first period, even after having a goal taken off the board that same period due to a replay challenge by the Stars. Fabbri opened scoring with a backhanded power-play goal 5:23 into the game after Dallas goalie Kari Lehtonen was unable to control a loose puck in front.

With about two minutes left in the first period, Tarasenko shot from in front of the left circle, and although the puck got behind Lehtonen and into the net to apparently make it 2-0, Dallas challenged the call. The replay showed that Tarasenko was just offside before the puck got in the zone, so officials wiped off the goal.

Nevertheless, the Blues shrugged this off and proceeded to score two more goals in the last 1:38 of the first period, including a shot from Berglund just inside the blue line with 3.4 seconds left before the intermission, to gain a 3-0 lead.

Stars coach Lindy Ruff has used two goalies all season, and Lehtonen was replaced after allowing three goals in eight shots. Antti Niemi took over in the second period, when Backes and Brouwer scored, but stopped the other eight shots he faced.

PHOTO: DALLAS, TX – MAY 11: Ales Hemsky #83 of the Dallas Stars and Kevin Shattenkirk #22 of the St. Louis Blues skate for the puck in the first period in Game Seven of the Western Conference Second Round during the 2016 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at American Airlines Center on May 11, 2016 in Dallas, Texas. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)