Dallas Stars Struggles Continue in Big Loss to Edmonton

Things continued to quickly roll downhill for the Dallas Stars as they were humiliated Monday night in a 7-1 loss to the Edmonton Oilers.

The Dallas Stars cannot seem to catch a break. They are continuing to struggle after having a short period of positivity during the Dad’s trip earlier this month.

Last night, however, the Stars were completely derailed en route to their eventual 7-1 loss to the Edmonton Oilers and it epitomizes their season.

Behind Early

Dallas has a habit of falling behind by a number of goals in a quick manner. Last night the Stars were down by two after the first period alone in the opposing team’s building.

It is difficult enough to start from behind, but it is exceptionally more so when on the road. There are limited home fans there to cheer you on and the level of comfort for the opposition is much higher. Not to mention that playing from behind early changes the entire team dynamic.

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Instead of making sound defensive plays, defenders are left with the tough decision of which risks to take. If they go for the puck and miss or it bounces, there is an odd man rush toward the Stars’ goaltender. However, if they do not go for it they risk being unable to catch their competition and lose anyways.

This dilemma is difficult and even more challenging in the fast-paced nature of the NHL. Dallas’ young defense core was presented with this decision last night and it proved to result in only the single Stars goal and the equivalent of a touchdown for the Oilers.

Rotating Goaltenders

The crease is one of the Stars’ biggest concerns at the moment. They have not been definitive in which goaltender they want to protect for the expansion draft.

The last two years of rotating between Antti Niemi and Kari Lehtonen has left a lot of room for questions. Unfortunately those questions have continued throughout this year with no concrete answers as of yet.

Last night both goaltenders made an appearance, something this year’s Stars have become rather accustomed to. Neither net minder served as anything near acceptable in the loss statistically, both ending the night with save percentages below .80.

The carousel of goaltending for the Stars is something that is complicated further by the inconsistencies of the team overall. Their lack of ability to score on some nights coupled with their horrendous defensive play leaves little room for mistakes in the blue paint.

And that makes deciding between the two with any sort of conviction all the more difficult.

Next: Dallas Stars Must Accept Reality

Moving Forward

There is no doubt that Dallas just wants this season to be over. They are dying to get out of the hole they have dug themselves and awaiting the chance to start anew in the fall. That, of course, will be after a long summer of pent up anger and frustration.

Hopefully they can find a way to win a few more games and boost morale before their season comes to a halt in less than one month’s time. If not, they will have quite the obstacle to overcome before next year kicks off.

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