Tyler Seguin got diverted from his bedtime routine when he checked the scores of two West Coast games to see who the Dallas Stars would play in the NHL playoffs’ first round.
“I went to the living room just to see what was happening,” Seguin mentioned in the Stars’ locker room.
Late Thursday night, Matt Duchene was also watching and kept updating his wife on the Stars’ potential opponents, which switched between the Las Vegas Golden Knights and Los Angeles Kings.
The top-seeded Stars ended up facing defending Stanley Cup champions Vegas in a playoff rematch.
Last year, the Golden Knights clinched the Western Conference Final with a Game 6 victory in Dallas. The first-round series begins Monday night.
As the Knights lost 4-1 at home to Anaheim, the Kings surrendered a two-goal lead at home. Chicago scored three goals in five minutes early in the third period, but the Kings tied the game with 1:21 remaining in regulation, securing the point needed for third place in the Pacific Division.
This result dropped Vegas to the second wild card in the West.
“It was a chaotic end to the LA game,” Duchene remarked. “You thought it was LA, then Vegas, and then back to LA, and finally Vegas again… It was a strange evening. I usually avoid that roller coaster and just go to bed. But last night, I started watching one of the games and got hooked.”