Mikko Rantanen’s partner Susanna drops raw reaction to game-winning moment as Stars eliminate Avs in Game 7

The Dallas Stars beat the Colorado Avalanche on Saturday night to advance into the next round of the Stanley Cup playoffs with a 4-2 comeback win. Stars forward Mikko Rantanen scored the decisive hat-trick to eliminate his former side in Game 7.

Rantanen’s partner, Susanna, was in attendance at American Airlines Center on the night. She posted her raw reaction on her Instagram stories right after the Stars won the heart-stopping game.

The clip saw Susanna celebrating emphatically from the stands. She added three ‘loudly crying face’ emojis in the caption.

After two scoreless periods, the Avs initially took control with a short-handed goal from Josh Manson, followed by a third-period goal from Nathan MacKinnon to make it 2-0.

Dallas then responded with four straight goals, starting with Mikko Rantanen, who scored three times in the third period for a hat trick. His first goal cut the lead in half and his power-play goal tied the game 2-2. Center Wyatt Johnston gave Dallas the lead minutes later with another power-play goal.

Rantanen sealed the game and the series with an empty-net goal in the final seconds. The forward was originally traded from the Avs earlier this year and will now be leading Dallas into the second round.

---

Mikko Rantanen claims the Avs are still his ‘brothers’

In the post-game interview, Mikko Rantanen reflected on the highly emotional win over his former team. He claimed that there were really no words to describe how he felt.

Rantanen also explained how emotional it was to go through the handshake line with the Avalanche players. Despite battling them on the ice during the series, he still considers them close friends and said it was a tough moment, personally.

“Emotional. You know, they’re my brothers. You know, I still love every one of them. You know, obviously we were enemies in the series on the ice, but they’re my dear friends off the ice. So it was emotional, and I love every one of them.”

When asked about how this tough series helps the Stars moving forward, Rantanen said it is great preparation for what’s ahead in the playoffs. He mentioned that sometimes strong teams face each other early because of how the standings work, but he believes that surviving a seven-game series this early should benefit them later.