May 11, 2016

  • Craig CustanceESPN Senior Writer

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    • Senior NHL writer for ESPN The Magazine
    • Wrote for Atlanta Journal-Constitution
    • Wrote for The Sporting News

DALLAS -- A black curtain separates the hallway between the players' dressing rooms of the St. Louis Blues and Dallas Stars at American Airlines Center.

As the Stars slowly filed through the hallway and back to their stalls after their 6-1 loss to the Blues in Game 7 on Wednesday, the weight of disappointment was heavy on their shoulders. A security guard walked over to the curtains and pulled them even tighter as the Stars' season came to a close.

It wasn't nearly enough to shield the shouts of celebration from the Blues players as they left the ice and started peeling off equipment. There was forward Ryan Reaves, standing at the door and greeting his teammates with yells and celebration. Other Blues waited in the hallway to congratulate each of the guys as they made their way back from the handshake line.

The Blues had just dominated their way to the Western Conference finals for the first time since 2001, and it felt great. It was a final, emphatic example that this Blues team is creating its own destiny and is not weighed down by the failures of the past.

Blues captain David Backes, who scored the fourth goal in this game, one that deflated a realistic comeback attempt from the Stars, has been part of this organization since it drafted him in 2003.

At that point, the Blues were only two years removed from a trip to the conference finals. Now, 13 years later for Backes, his team is ready to be one of the last four teams standing. The shortcomings of the past are less of a painful memory and now a true stepping stone to potentially something great.

"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."

Troy Brouwer has been a part of a championship team, winning the 2010 Stanley Cup with the Chicago Blackhawks. He's also been part of a franchise that has felt the weight of playoff struggles in the past while with the Washington Capitals.

When he arrived as part of a crucial offseason trade by general manager Doug Armstrong, he saw a group of players he didn't know well but respected immensely. He didn't see guys who choked in the playoffs; he saw guys who ran up against some Western Conference powerhouses in the Blackhawks and Los Angeles Kings.

Now he's been part of the breakthrough. His goal was the fifth of Game 7, and it was the dagger. He now has five goals in these playoffs.

This was why he was brought aboard -- and why a younger, skillful T.J. Oshie was sent the other way. It was for this moment and the ones to come.

"We've really wanted this from Day 1," Brouwer said. "We're putting ourselves in a good situation to continue going forward. But we're only halfway there."

The Blues were no doubt aided in Game 7 by ugly goaltending at the worst possible time for the Stars, with Kari Lehtonen allowing three goals in the first period and Antti Niemi yielding another two in the second.

Nobody in the Stars room would pin it on goaltending. They defended their goalie. Dallas coach Lindy Ruff pointed out scoring chances that were blown.

Lehtonen, though, knew.

"As a goalie, you try to make every save. Today, I wasn't able to do that. Of course, I feel bad about that," Lehtonen said. "That's it."

And that was it. The Stars never recovered. And maybe this was going to be the result anyway. The Blues entered this game with a calm the Stars clearly didn't have, certainly not in goal, where the difference was staggering between Brian Elliott and his counterparts in Dallas.

Afterward, Blues forward Steve Ott said there weren't even nerves. That's how far these Blues have come. It's the biggest game of the season and Ott described it as stress-free.

"To a man here, the mindset was there was no stress," Ott said. "Guys were laughing, having fun. We have a fun, lively group. It really felt stress-free and natural. It translated into our game."

Stress-free? That's certainly not how you'd describe the Blues' approach in big games of the past.

"No. It's this team. This year. People love dwelling on last year's team. Everybody does and compares it," Ott said. "Every team is different ... every team is different, coupled with the experience of letdowns."

Blues owner Tom Stillman worked his way around the dressing room, shaking the hands of his players, hugging others. To him, this game felt different than the Game 7 win against the Blackhawks in the first round. That final buzzer came with jubilation in the owners box. This one? It felt more like a relief. He could relax.

"Rather than being whipped up into a frenzy, you're like, 'It happened,'" Stillman said.

Finally, it happened. After 15 long years, it happened.

Stillman came over to Ott with a big smile and gave him one word:

"Awesome."

It has been awesome so far for these Blues. Now they're in position for it to get even better.