Dallas Stars Face Near Unbeatable Opponent In Critical Time
By Josh Clark
The Dallas Stars got two points Thursday night, which is awesome. But if they want to return to the top of the West, they must face off with a team that always gives them fits: the Colorado Avalanche.
It’s always a difficult scenario when your favorite team goes through a slump, no matter what the sport. The players look worn, the coaching staff seems to have no answer to get the team out, the club may be falling in the standings, and the fans fall into somewhat of a depression.
The worst part is, every team has their slumps. No team goes 82-0-0 during the year, and most of the time their losses come in chunks. The Dallas Stars were lucky enough to not experience back-to-back losses until the beginning of 2016, but their slump sadly continued past those first two losses of the New Year.
So far in January, the Stars are 2-5-2 with six points through 22 days. It has no doubt been a rough path to follow.
The worst part was that they could never seem to fix their problem. Sometimes their offense would experience an off night while their defense and goaltending carried the load. Once the offense fixed itself, the goaltending or defense would falter. It almost seemed like a never-ending cycle.
But the Stars found a way to grab two points last night. Upon returning home after a three-game winless road trip to California, the Dallas Stars defeated the Edmonton Oilers 3-2 for their first regulation win of the 2016 calendar year. It may not have been the prettiest effort ever, but it was a major step up from their previous play and got them a much-needed two points.
Going into Thursday night’s game, the Stars were five points behind the Chicago Blackhawks for first place in the Central Division and Western Conference. They also sat tied with the St. Louis Blues for second place, though the Stars had three games in hand on both teams.
While the Stars won, the Blackhawks lost and the Blues remained where they were. The two points for the Stars put them just three points back of the Hawks and gave them a two-point cushion with the Blues.
Things are definitely tight at the top of the Central Division, and the Stars have little room for any type of error. That being said, they are about to face off with a team that has puzzled them for years now. That team is the Colorado Avalanche.
Last season alone, the Dallas Stars went 0-3-2 against the Avs and could not take two points to save their lives. This season, they are already 0-1-0 against them, with the Avalanche dealing the Stars their first loss of the year on October 10th.
The Stars last victory against Colorado was on December 17th, 2013. That was back during the season that eventually led to the Stars first playoff berth in five years… Since the beginning of the 2013-2014 year, the Stars are 1-7-3 against the Avalanche. This is their worst record against any team in the NHL over the last three seasons.
It is usually the play of Semyon Varlamov that stumps the Stars to the point of no return, and sometimes it is the Stars coughing up a late lead. Whatever the case may be, Dallas can never seem to learn from their previous mistakes.
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But this time, a win is almost crucial. The Dallas Stars can continue rising in the standings with a victory, but a loss moves them closer to falling to third place in the division.
The Avalanche will not be easy to take down either. Though they are currently fifth place in the Central with 51 points, they are holding the final wild card spot. The Avs have a record of 6-4-0 so far in January, and had a five-game winning streak towards the end of December that helped bump them back up into playoff talks.
Next: Stars Pick Up Two-Sided Victory, Climbing Back Up Standings
All in all, this will be a game featuring two desperate teams. While the level of severity is different, it will all the more drive both teams. Do the Stars have what it takes to subdue the Avalanche for the first time in over two years?