Winding Down
The season is winding down for the Dallas Stars, and they're ten points out of a playoff spot as I'm writing this, so it's safe to say it'll take a near miracle for them to get into the playoffs.
So let's take a look at the bright spots, the good points, and then the spots we aren't so proud of this season.
The Bright Spots:
Rookies/Young Players - The Stars have an unbelievable amount of talent both with the main club and down in Cedar Park with the Texas Stars. This is proof of the great scouting, drafting, and development that is present in the club. Guys who were an intrigal part of the Texas Stars' run to the Calder Cup last year have made their presence felt very prominently in their time this season in Dallas. The four that stand out the most are Curtis McKenzie, Brett Ritchie, Jyrki Jokipakka, and John Klingberg. On the front end, McKenzie and Ritchie were teammates and roommates with the Texas Stars, so there's already chemistry there. As seen in the game against Philadelphia, the two connected on a "pure goal scorer's goal" as Daryl Reaugh so eloquently
described in Dallas' 2-1 win. The two are smart and know what to do when they get the puck and aren't afraid to bang bodies with opponents. The path only goes up from here for those two, I feel like. The same can be said on the blue line where Jyrki Jokipakka and the Swedish wonderkid, John Klingberg sit. Jyrki has been, for the most part, a calm presence in front of Lehtonen and Enroth. Knows where to be, who to guard, and is not lackadaisical or stupid with the puck. Klingberg is that and more. A contender for the Calder Trophy for the league's best rookie, Klingberg can defend extremely well, pass very well, and can score to boot. He (as of March 11th) is sixth in rookie scoring with 36 points (10 G, 26 A) and is the top scoring rookie defenseman in the league. As stated with Ritchie and McKenzie, the future only looks up for these two as well.
Tyler Seguin - I could rain statistical praises down on Tyler Seguin all day long and it still wouldn't be enough for how much he means to the team. Even after missing ten games, he's still second in points on the Stars with 61 and leads the team in goals at 31. Seguin has 4 game winning
goals and 9 power play goals, the most on the team as well. His fire and determination to help the team was clearly evident in a postgame interview when he said he "never will be 100%" but still wants to get out and contribute to the team even though the playoff flame is almost out. Not only on the ice, but off the ice he's matured greatly as a human being. Through his foundation, "Seguin's Stars", he helps people with spinal cord injuries as well as providing a luxury suite to members of the Southwest Wheelchair Athletic Assosciation. To many it seems like Seguin has yet to hit his prime and he's already a prolific scorer at the age of 23 and is continuing to try to round out his defensive game and become a better overall player. The sky really is the limit for Seguin.
The Good:
The Pitbulls - About midway through the 2013-14 season, Lindy Ruff found a line that gelled together very well and was (and still is) one of the top lines night in and night out for the team. The line of Antoine Roussel, Cody Eakin, and Ryan Garbutt (AKA "The Pitbulls") is that solid, physical, sneaky, gritty line that every team is looking for. The trio of Roussel, Eakin, and Garbutt is a line that isn't afraid to get down in the trenches and get under the opponent's skin. An unlikely blend in the three came together to work out as the most consistent part of the team. Cody Eakin is an extremely solid second/third line center with potential to be on the top line with Seguin and Jamie Benn if need be. He's constantly around or if not over the 50% mark in terms of face offs night in and night out combined with a dead even 30 points, split half and half with goals and assists at 15. Ryan Garbutt's season thus far has been riddled with mental lapses in
judgement but as of late, has settled down into a consistent player that will get up and make
plays in the offensive zone and funnel the puck towards the net to help others score. Then there's Antoine Roussel The little French ball of hate is nice and interactive off the ice, but as soon as he straps the bucket on, it's anything but that when it comes to those who oppose him. He's not afraid to get into fights and get under the other guys' skins in any way possible. Roussel leads the team by a long shot, doubling the 60 minutes that the next highest player has, Jamie Benn, at 128 penalty minutes. It doesn't come as a detriment to the team, however. Roussel still contributes offensively, scoring 12 goals and notching 12 assists to his name. The rumors have been floating around that potentially Cody Eakin could be dealt this summer, but in my opinion, it might not be best for the team if it happens because he's a strong player almost anywhere you set him in the lineup, as well as his other two Pitbull linemates.
The Bad/Ugly:
The Bad: Defense
As much as I highlighted the success of the rookie defensemen, the defense as a whole has been down as compared to normal, which is somewhat expected of a young group on the back end. It's small mental mistakes that have lead to costly goals against with a shaky goaltender situation (I'll highlight that in my next point) that have been the downfall, many feel, to this season. While the offense has been stacking up tons and tons of goals, the defense has given up tons and tons against. The Stars give up 3.25 goals against per game (source: NHL.com) which is 27th in the league, only above Arizona, Edmonton, and Buffalo. This says a lot about the group in the back. With the addition of Jason Demers and the stepped up play of Klingberg, Daley (who is injured now) and Goligoski, the defense is better than it was earlier this season when Lindy would juggle the pairings seemingly every game. Even Jordie Benn, who was extremely shaky at the end of the last calendar year, has gotten into a groove and has improved. So even though the blue line may not be as good as it can be, I feel it takes time and experience for this group to gel and grow together, and with a couple moves by Jim Nill to get someone solid on the blue line, could be a very solid defense in front of the net.
The Ugly: Goaltending
I'm just going to be frank and say it. The goaltending has not been good for the Stars this season. Why that is, it still baffles me, but the Stars just have not found someone to lean on this year yet. Lehtonen, some feel, has not been the same since the concussion he suffered on March 8th of 2014 in a game against the Minnesota Wild where Erik Haula bowled over Kari causing him to be helped off the ice and was later diagnossed with a concussion. This has definitely not been his best statistical year by his standards as he has a 2.94 GAA and a .906 SV%. That's up from last season's stats where he boasted a 2.41 GAA and .919 SV%, helping lead the Stars to their first playoff appearance since he joined the team. It's not that Lehtonen hasn't been all terrible, because there have been good games for him. He's just inconsistent in my mind. Some nights he'll be on it and will make amazing saves and stop the puck when the Stars need a big save, and other nights he'll let a soft goal sneak by him or just won't look on it and comfortable in net. The problem has been the same for those under him. Now Buffalo
goaltender, Anders Lindback, did not fair well at all in Dallas where he put up a 2-8-0 record with the Stars and had a horrid 3.71 GAA and .875 SV%. Jhonas Enroth has been better than Lindback by a good margin, but just has had games where the defense has left him out to dry sometimes and has had freak bounces go against him. So far in his short tenure with the Stars, Enroth has a 1-5-0 record with a 3.35 GAA and a .873 SV%. That may not look very shiny and impressive, but I don't think we have seen the full potential out of the Swedish goaltender yet and it's a matter of time. But as a whole, the situation in net has been up and down all season long. One can hope possibly that in the offseason something will happen either internally or through moves that can bring a little more confidence and calmness behind the defense and produce a much better outcome than this season.
So there you have it. The great, the good, and the bad from this season. Take it as you will. I'd gladly take comments on what you think as well, so reach me on Twitter through my handle @dnadders and I'd love to talk!
Thanks for reading!
P.S. An end of the season photo montage will be coming out hopefully as soon as the season ends, so stay tuned!
