After his team staved off elimination twice against the Vegas Golden Knights, Dallas Stars head coach Peter DeBoer didn't believe there was much left to give during Monday's blowout, season-ending loss.

"Every time you go to an elimination game, it takes a toll physically, mentally," he said after the 6-0 defeat. "It's hard to refill that tank over and over again. I just didn't think there was a lot left tonight."

Including Game 7 against the Seattle Kraken, the Stars played in four elimination contests in these playoffs. The Golden Knights, meanwhile, have yet to play in a contest with their season on the brink.

Vegas dominated Game 6, controlling 68.4% of the scoring chances, 60% of the shots, and 69.6% of the expected goals at five-on-five, according to Natural Stat Trick.

The Stars never had a chance to get into the contest after the Golden Knights erupted for a three-goal lead in the first period.

Veteran forward Joe Pavelski didn't have an answer as to why the Stars came out flat on home ice.

"There's a lot of give and take throughout the playoffs, there's a lot of highs and lows," he told reporters postgame. "You just expect more out of yourself in situations like this. ... Definitely wanted more tonight out of this game."

He added, "I've been a part of different runs like this. I had a lot of belief in this group, so to come up a little short, it's always tough because you thought there was more out there for us."

Tyler Seguin thought the Stars earned themselves a better fate.

"I didn't think we deserved to go out the way we did tonight," Seguin said. "Hockey's hard, man. Game 1, we didn't play great, but we probably could have snuck it out.

"Game 2, you play great and they sneak it out. ... I'm still proud of this group and how many responses we've had throughout the whole year."

The Stars (47-21-14) finished one point behind the Colorado Avalanche for the No. 1 spot in the Central Division.

Though Dallas fell short of making the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since 2020, DeBoer is pleased that his team managed to exceed expectations during his first season behind the Stars' bench.

"There's a lot to be proud of. There's only four teams left standing out of 32," he said. "I don't think at the beginning of the year a lot of people had us pencilled as one of them. There was a lot of work put in by our group."

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The Nashville Predators are hiring Andrew Brunette as their new head coach, replacing John Hynes, reports ESPN's Kevin Weekes.

Brunette was nominated for the Jack Adams Award last season after piloting the Florida Panthers through their Presidents' Trophy-winning campaign in his first year as an NHL head coach.

He served as an associate coach for the New Jersey Devils in 2022-23.

Brunette has some experience within the Predators organization. He played for Nashville in 1998-99 and is credited with scoring the franchise's first-ever goal.

The 49-year-old netted 11 goals and 20 assists in 77 contests as a Predator and amassed 733 points in 1,110 career NHL games.

Brunette stepped in as Panthers head coach on an interim basis after Joel Quenneville resigned in October 2021. Brunette had been an assistant coach on Quenneville's staff since 2019.

Florida dominated the regular season but was ultimately swept by the Tampa Bay Lightning in the second round. After falling short in the postseason, the Panthers moved on from Brunette and hired Paul Maurice.

The Panthers went 51-18-6 under Brunette's direction.

Hynes had one year remaining on his contract. The Predators finished the 2022-23 campaign fifth in the Central Division with a 42-32-8 record and missed the playoffs for the first time since 2013-14.

In four seasons as head coach in Nashville, Hynes put together a record of 134-96-18. Hynes' Predators never advanced past the opening round of the playoffs.

Brunette will be the first head coach of Barry Trotz's tenure as general manager. The Predators announced in February that former executive David Poile was stepping down from the position after a 26-year run at the helm.

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The Washington Capitals intend to name Spencer Carbery their new head coach, reports The Athletic's Tarik El-Bashir.

Carbery spent the last two seasons as an assistant coach with the Toronto Maple Leafs. The 41-year-old guided the Capitals' AHL affiliate, the Hershey Bears, to the league's best regular-season record in 2021.

More to come.

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The Vegas Golden Knights dominated the Dallas Stars 6-0 in Monday's Game 6 to advance to the Stanley Cup Final.

Vegas had dropped consecutive games after taking a commanding 3-0 series lead. It's the second time the Golden Knights will play for the Stanley Cup; they lost the 2018 finals against the Washington Capitals in their inaugural season.

The Florida Panthers await the Golden Knights in the finals. Florida completed its sweep of the Carolina Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference Final on Wednesday. Neither franchise has won the Stanley Cup.

William Carrier's goal 3:41 into the opening frame proved to be the eventual winner. William Karlsson netted two goals to reach 10 in the playoffs, setting a new Golden Knights franchise mark in a single postseason.

Adin Hill made 23 saves for his second shutout of the series.

The Stanley Cup Final begins Saturday in Las Vegas at 8 p.m. ET.

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Golden Knights forward Jonathan Marchessault is keeping a levelheaded perspective after Vegas whiffed on its first two chances to eliminate the Dallas Stars in the Western Conference Final.

"Closing series, it's hard. But if you told me a few months ago that you would be up 3-2 playing a Game 6 in Dallas, I would take it any time," Marchessault said ahead of Monday's contest. "We're still in a good position. We're going to come out here and play one of our best road games."

Vegas went 26-7-8 on the road during the regular season - good for a sterling .732 point percentage - and is 5-2 away from home during these playoffs.

The Golden Knights won the first three games of the series to put Dallas in a deep hole, but the Stars took Games 4 and 5 to stave off elimination.

When asked if there's now more pressure on the Golden Knights in the series, Dallas head coach Peter DeBoer quipped, "How couldn't there be, right?"

Golden Knights bench boss Bruce Cassidy emphasized that his squad is unfazed by the sudden tightness of the matchup.

"I don't think our players are looking at pressure in any way, shape, or form," he said. "We're playing a game we love, we're in a very enviable position. ... We've got an opportunity to close out and get to the Stanley Cup Final. So, I think that's what our guys are focused on."

The Golden Knights have probability on their side.

Only four teams in NHL history have won a playoff series after trailing 3-0: The 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs, 1975 New York Islanders, 2010 Philadelphia Flyers, and 2014 Los Angeles Kings.

If the Stars take Monday's Game 6 in Dallas, Vegas will have to hand DeBoer the first Game 7 loss of his career to advance to the final round.

Marchessault has led the way for the Golden Knights in the conference finals with six points (three goals, three assists) through five games.

The puck drops on Game 6 at 8 p.m. ET in Dallas.

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The Stars won both contests of Jamie Benn's two-game suspension to hang tough against the Vegas Golden Knights, and the captain said he's "feeling energized" and ready to re-enter the fold with the momentum on Dallas' side.

"I was praying we were going to play two solid games just to give me that chance, another kick at it here," Benn said prior to Monday's must-win Game 6. "I'm really proud of the guys."

Benn earned the ban for cross-checking Golden Knights captain Mark Stone in the early goings of Game 3.

The Stars took Game 4 thanks to Joe Pavelski's overtime winner, while Ty Dellandrea's two-goal performance in a 4-2 victory cut the Golden Knights' hold on the Western Conference Final to 3-2.

According to Stars head coach Peter DeBoer, Benn wasn't "a really good spectator" throughout his absence.

"He's an angry bear walking around waiting to play again," DeBoer said Sunday. "I think he's on pins and needles. ... I think he'll be excited to play."

Benn has three goals and eight assists in 16 games this spring. He was the Stars' second-leading scorer (78 points in 82 contests) during the regular season.

On Monday, DeBoer stayed mum on who would come out of the lineup to accommodate Benn's return, but he announced Evgenii Dadonov would miss a third straight game due to a lower-body injury.

When Dadonov and Benn were both out of the lineup, the Stars leaned on Fredrik Olofsson, who performed admirably in his first taste of playoff action. The 27-year-old didn't record a point in Games 4 and 5, but Dallas controlled 63.3% of the shots and 80.4% of the expected goals with Olofsson on the ice at five-on-five, per Natural Stat Trick.

"It's a good problem to have," DeBoer said Sunday of his impending lineup decisions. "Your captain's coming back in the lineup, guys have battled their ass off to give him a chance to play again."

For Stars defenseman Thomas Harley, Benn's mission in his return should be simple.

"We just need him to be himself," he said. "He's got a couple extra days of rest, which I think is huge. He's our leader out there, he's our captain, so you know he's going to bring the intensity, and we're just going to follow him."

Puck drops on Game 6 in Dallas at 8 p.m. ET.

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