It was a disastrous night for the Dallas Stars in Game 3 of the Western Conference Finals against the Vegas Golden Knights — and their fans didn’t help.
Dallas supporters were so disgusted with their team’s outing — an eventual 4-0 loss, which put the Stars in a 3-0 series hole on Tuesday — that they couldn’t wait until the end of regulation to begin tossing trash onto the ice at the American Airlines Center in Dallas.
As the second period came to a close, with Las Vegas rolling to a 4-0 lead, the home crowd began booing their team and tossing beverages, food, and other “heavy objects” onto the ice, according to one of the broadcasters.
Cameras zoomed in on a Truly alcoholic beverage rolling on the ice, while a Stars employee picked up a number of drinks and beer cans.
“This is so unnecessary,” the broadcaster said, while another added, “We just had some French fries go on the ice.”
The incident caused a brief delay with 21.6 seconds remaining in the second period.
A Dallas Stars employee picked up trash on the ice after fans threw beverages and other objects during the team’s eventual 4-0 loss to the Golden Knights during the Western Conference finals at T-Mobile Arena on May 23, 2023. TwitterDallas didn’t get off to a good start in Game 3 after dropping the first two games of the series in overtime.
With his team trailing 1-0, Stars captain Jamie Benn was ejected in the first two minutes when he checked Vegas captain Mark Stone, knocking him to the ice.
Then, as Benn fell onto the ice, his stick nearly struck Stone in the face — which prompted on-ice officials to assess Benn with a match penalty for cross-checking.
A Dallas Stars employee picked up trash on the ice after fans threw beverages and other objects during the team’s eventual 4-0 loss to the Golden Knights during the Western Conference finals at T-Mobile Arena on May 23, 2023. Twitter
A Dallas Stars employee picked up trash on the ice after fans threw beverages and other objects during the team’s eventual 4-0 loss to the Golden Knights during the Western Conference finals at T-Mobile Arena on May 23, 2023. TwitterThe 33-year-old team captain refused to speak with the media after the game.
“I’m not sure you could script it much worse,” Dallas coach Peter DeBoer said of the team’s start.
DeBoer, along with other Dallas players, defended Benn, with the coach saying the forward “made a mistake” on the play.
A Dallas Stars employee picked up trash on the ice after fans threw beverages and other objects during the team’s eventual 4-0 loss to the Golden Knights during the Western Conference finals at T-Mobile Arena on May 23, 2023. Twitter
A Dallas Stars employee picked up trash on the ice after fans threw beverages and other objects during the team’s eventual 4-0 loss to the Golden Knights during the Western Conference finals at T-Mobile Arena on May 23, 2023. Twitter“I don’t think anyone in the building feels worse than he does about it,” DeBoer said. “I’m not going to pile on him.
“He’s been a leader here for his entire career and leads by example every day on and off the ice. He made a mistake. Fortunately, Mark Stone’s OK.”
The Knights are now one win away from a return to the Stanley Cup Final — five years after they were defeated by the Washington Capitals in five games in 2018.
That was the Knights’ inaugural year as the league’s newest expansion team.
Game 4 is set for Thursday night in Dallas.
