The 6-3 loss to Edmonton in Game 5 of the Western Conference Final sealed the deal for the Oilers to return to the Stanley Cup Final, but also created a myriad of what-ifs for the Dallas Stars.

After a 4-1 series loss and four losses in a row, Dallas is left wondering what happened, with plenty of blame to go around and lots of head scratching as to how such a good team just could not put it together against Edmonton for a second conference final in a row.

In Game 5, Dallas needed a win, but head coach Pete DeBoer pulled Jake Oettinger, the starting goaltender and one of his biggest assets and best players, after only two Oilers shots on goal. Casey DeSmith came in and battled until the end, but it created the biggest what-if of the entire series.

What if Oettinger had stayed in the net for the entire game?

There is no guarantee that Dallas would have won the game, the series or even the Stanley Cup if Oettinger had played the entire game. The Stars might not have even gotten three goals of their own. No one can say what would have happened.

But therein lies the rub. Everyone will be left guessing for however long it stays relevant, probably until Dallas makes it to the Cup Final.

Now imagine Oettinger sitting on the bench watching his team pull to within a goal not once but twice and being unable to help, unable to give the team a chance to come all the way back.

DeBoer surprisingly doubled down on, of all things, Oettinger's poor performance after the game.

We had talked endlessly in this series about trying to play with a lead, and obviously we were in a 2-0 hole right away,” DeBoer said. “I didn’t take that lightly and I didn’t blame it all on Jake, but the reality is, if you go back to last year’s playoffs, he’s lost six of seven games to Edmonton. And we give up two goals on two shots in an elimination game. So it was partly to spark our team and wake them up. And partly knowing that status quo had not been working, and that’s a pretty big sample size.”

It does not sound there like DeBoer trusted one of his best players in the biggest moment of their season, fighting for another day with their backs up against the wall. Sure, he might statistically be right, but the best players have to step up, and a coach has to trust that the ability is there.

Now, a big concern is whether Oettinger and DeBoer can coexist after such a decision was made. No one would blame Oettinger if he had lost some semblance of trust after a moment like that. It was not just any other game. Oettinger was stripped of his opportunity to help his team stay alive. And he won't get another one this season.

The decision was made in the moment to try and save the Stars season, but at what cost? Moving forward, if the two figures cannot reconcile what happened, there could be consequences of which could never have been dreamt of in the moment.

Oettinger is an avid golfer, and credits it for helping his mentality of moving on after a bad shot leaves a bad taste in his mouth.

Hopefully for the Stars, next year is like the next hole, a new challenge and just another shot.

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