Injury-riddled Stars, down 5 players in Stanley Cup Final defeat, finish two wins short of last conquering moment

For most Stars, the 2019-20 season ended Monday night in a 2-0 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final.

For some others — many more than interim head coach Rick Bowness would’ve liked — their play finished prematurely.

Five players the Stars relied on for significant contributions throughout the season missed Game 6 with injuries.

As Tampa Bay clinched its first Cup since 2004, leaving the Stars two wins from their first championship since 1999, Dallas lamented their shorthanded quest through the final round.

“Anyone who’s ever won a Stanley Cup will tell you that to win the Cup, you’ve got to be lucky and you’ve got to be healthy,” Bowness said. “Was there enough in the tank tonight? No, there wasn’t.”

Hours before the puck dropped Monday, Bowness joked that at times the Stars' medical room in the Edmonton bubble has appeared more “like a hospital.”

Starting goaltender Ben Bishop and defenseman Stephen Johns missed the majority of the four-series playoff run with undisclosed injuries.

Center Radek Faksa didn’t return after enduring what appeared to be a left hand injury in Game 3 of the Western Conference final. Forwards Roope Hintz and Blake Comeau suffered injuries during the Final.

Dallas ruled them all out before Game 6. Defenseman Andrej Sekara, who was a game-time decision, paired with Johns' replacement, Joel Hanley.

The Stars made no excuses.

“A lot of bumps” are among the many obstacles every playoff team has had to juggle, Bowness said. The Lightning, for example, played all but three minutes of the postseason without captain Steven Stamkos.

With the NHL scheduling games almost every other night, there was little time for rest and recovery in the Stars' two-plus months abroad.

“Going into that locker room, that trainer’s room, and having to wait in line to get in because everyone’s got ice bags on them,” Tyler Seguin said. “Boys [were] grinding through.”

The voids showed at times against the Lightning.

The Stars' penalty kill, for example, was down several main contributors for much of the series, allowing Tampa Bay to score on seven of 16 power plays in the last five games, including one of three in Game 6.

They appeared lethargic at times Monday and registered just 22 shots to Tampa Bay’s 29.

Those who stepped up in the absences embodied the resilience Bowness coveted.

Goaltender Anton Khudobin became perhaps the player most essential in the Stars' advancement to the Final and finished with 27 saves in Game 6. Forward Justin Dowling spent 2:18 on the penalty kill all season for the Stars, and 1:19 on Monday night.

The Stars this year overcame a losing start, surprise midseason coaching change and an unprecedented pandemic pause that left many wondering whether the NHL could even finish the season.

Dallas, with a large cheering section of injured players in a Rogers Place arena suite, ended just two wins from a final conquering moment.

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