Is Jake Oettinger playing tonight against Seattle Kraken? May 4th, 2023 NHL Playoffs

Jake Oettinger is playing tonight for the Dallas Stars. He gave up five goals on 44 shots in Game 1 against Kraken's 5-4 overtime loss on Tuesday.

Oettinger struggled early on, giving up four goals in the opening frame. 52 seconds later saw the addition of three of those tallies. Despite the Stars' Joe Pavelski's four-goal performance, Kraken's Yanni Gourde scored the game-winning goal in overtime due to confusion in the Stars' defensive zone.

After that, though, Oettinger resumed his previous form against the Wild, when he only allowed one goal in the previous two games. In total, he made 29 saves in the second and third periods. Thus, removing any speculation of being out of form.

Jake Oettinger has a 4-3 record, a 2.35 GAA, and a.921 save percentage through seven postseason games. In Game 2 on Thursday, he'll try to get back on track.

“I didn’t see it,” Oettinger said after Seattle’s 5-4 win over the Stars on Tuesday. “Not the best rebound of my career, but just move on.”

Oettinger will need to settle his nerves if Dallas needs to get back on track. He needs to be the goalie that everyone saw during the regular season.

Jake Oettinger: Dallas' star goaltender

Jake Oettinger spent his first year at Boston University before being taken by Dallas in the first round (at pick No. 26) of the 2017 NHL Draft. Before signing with the Stars on March 25, 2019, he played two more seasons at Boston University.

In his first full season as a professional, Texas of the American Hockey League, he went 15-16-4 with a 2.57 goals-against average,917 save percentage, and three shutouts in 38 games.

Jake Oettinger signed a three-year, $12 million contract with the Dallas Stars on September 2, 2022, as a restricted free agent.

He started 48 games (46 starts) the previous season, going 30-15-1 with a 2.53 goals-against average,914 save percentage, and two shutouts after starting behind Braden Holtby and Anton Khudobin on the depth chart and taking over as the No. 1 goalie halfway through.

When he played the third period for the Stars in a 3-0 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights in Game 2 of the Western Conference Final on Sept. 8, 2020, he made history as the first goalie in the expansion era (since 1967–68) to make his NHL debut in the round preceding the Stanley Cup Final. He prevented a goal with five stops.