Dallas Stars Predicted To Regress By Bleacher Report
By Josh Clark
It’s not that difficult to notice that the Dallas Stars are a solid team with a world of potential in front of them. But even with that, Bleacher Report projects them to take a step back in the season to come.
The Central Division has a habit of constantly running on efficiency. Each year since the realignment in 2013, five of the seven teams in the Central have qualified for the Stanley Cup Playoffs (the maximum amount possible).
Things have yet to change, and it does not seem like they will be changing anytime soon. At the beginning of the realignment, the Chicago Blackhawks and St. Louis Blues dominated the division. But in the recent past, the Dallas Stars and Nashville Predators have clawed their way into the spotlight.
This past season, the Stars made a massive footprint when they shocked the Central by winning the division with 50 wins and 109 points. It seemed as though Dallas had finally built a winning hockey team that could compete for a Cup.
Though the Stars were eliminated in seven games in the Western Conference semifinals against the Blues, they left the window wide open for an exciting season this coming year.
The Dallas Stars lost some valued players in the offseason, but none of the departures were considered fatal to the team’s success. Alex Goligoski and Jason Demers headlined the list of names that the Stars lost.
On the other hand, they were able to sign Dan Hamhuis and Jiri Hudler in free agency, virtually helping to replace the talent lost. This along with a mixture of strong and talented youth has Dallas in sight of the Cup.
Or, at least some might think. While most would consider Dallas an early playoff favorite and even a Stanley Cup contender, the folks at Bleacher Report have pinpointed the Stars as one of the few teams destined to take a step back in the season ahead.
As part of an article based on teams likely to regress in the 2016-17 NHL season, B/R predicts that the Dallas Stars may qualify for playoffs, but that they will have an extremely difficult time winning the division.
Their biggest argument focuses around the goaltending and young defense. Last season, the Stars ran with a goaltending tandem of Kari Lehtonen and Antti Niemi, along with a defense that primarily consisted of Goligoski, Demers, John Klingberg, Kris Russell, Johnny Oduya, Stephen Johns, and Jordie Benn.
Three of the six defensive starters for the Dallas Stars in game seven last year have since moved on to new clubs. The Stars were highly criticized for their goalie duo throughout the playoffs, considering Niemi could never string together a consistent performance and Lehtonen was only able to bear the load for so long.
Bleacher Report cites these two “inefficiencies” as reasons of why the Stars will not be able to meet the bar they set last year. That’s somewhat inaccurate.
While the playoffs were a shaky time for the goaltenders, they did not seem to have much trouble during the regular season. Each goalie played a slightly above average season in the net, and each one logged 25 wins. It’s two completely different worlds when you compare the regular season and the postseason.
The goalies may be in for a rough year, but there’s nothing that leads to that conclusion yet. Considering they are done transitioning and adapting to the new system, there is legitimate reason to believe that the two could turn into one of the most effective goaltending systems in the league.
Secondly, the defense will have little trouble picking up where last season’s defense landed. The Stars basically replaced Goligoski with Hamhuis and Jason Demers with Patrik Nemeth this offseason. That’s not a bad tradeoff at all. Hamhuis is a veteran defender that can play multiple roles, and Nemeth has grown into an effective d-man for the Stars.
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Not to mention that Dallas will have plenty of options in the coming season on the blue line. The Dallas Stars will more than likely carry eight defensemen on their roster to start the year.
Dan Hamhuis – John Klingberg
Johnny Oduya – Stephen Johns
Patrik Nemeth – Jordie Benn
All eight of these defenders have proven track records and have already competed in NHL play in their career. A good majority of them are farm-grown players coming from the Stars’ system. If a defensive group begins to slip, head coach Lindy Ruff has the opportunity to make a quick and seamless substitution.
Overall, the Dallas Stars have a lot of questions surrounding their team that cannot be answered until the regular season begins and we see the team in action. Will the goalies be able to shake off last year’s postseason collapse? Is the new defense ready to fill the big shoes? These could easily be answered with both yes or no.
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But until the season starts, just keep your faith built up. The Stars are in a good spot, and could be ready for a Cup. Or, they might take a step back. Either way, we’ll have to wait for the new system to show itself off.