Mar 12, 2013; Dallas, TX, USA; Dallas Stars right wing Reilly Smith (18) warms up before the game against the Nashville Predators at the American Airlines Center. The Predators shut out the Stars 4-0. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

With the regular season over, it’s time for players around the league to be evaluated for their effectiveness and their value to a team. We’ll be doing the same thing throughout the month of May, and we’d love to hear your opinions on our grading.

We’ll travel through the team in numerical order this year and we’ll hit every individual that was on the roster as of Saturday April 27; the official end of the Stars season.

Reilly Smith

It was a season of firsts for Reilly Smith, who held a place on the Dallas Stars roster for 37 of the 48 games post-lockout. The 22-year-old Canadian hit NHL ice for the first time last year, but was unable to register a point in his first three appearances. This season would prove to be different though, with Smith scoring not just one, but three goals, and recording six assists for the season. Smith also balanced good shifts and bad shifts, closing out the season at zero in the plus/minus.

Smith scored his first goal against the Vancouver Canucks on February 15 in Vancouver. Two nights later in Dallas, he scored his second against the Calgary Flames. Smith scored his final goal of the season February 25 in Nashville. The next night against Columbus, Smith posted the first assist of his NHL career.

Despite hitting a dry spell in goal-scoring, Smith continued to post assists through the end of the season against Los Angeles, Minnesota and Vancouver.

Smith also played in 45 games with the Texas Stars and contributed 14 goals and 21 assists to the AHL team in the regular season. After Dallas’ season came to a close in late April, he returned to the farm team for seven games in the post-season. Smith recorded four assists in the team’s race for the Calder Cup, which ended in the semi-finals against the Oklahoma City Barons.

Smith was a visible presence on Dallas ice, but didn’t over-exert himself in physicality. Spending a total of ten minutes in the penalty box, Smith didn’t shy away from an altercation, but didn’t seek it out either.

Because of Smith’s ability to perform both for Dallas and for Texas, and in acknowledgment of his season of firsts, I give Reilly Smith a B for the 2012-2013 season.

Goal scoring: B

Assists: B

Plus/Minus: B

On-ice presence and performance: B

Photo courtesy of www.sportslogos.net

With last Thursday’s 5-1 loss to the Barons in Oklahoma City, the Texas Stars’ run for the 2012-2013 Calder Cup has come to an end. The victory clinched a spot in the Western Conference finals for the Barons, who took the seven-game semi-finals series against Texas in five games. The Stars only victory came May 11 in Texas’ final game on home ice.

The Barons took the lead late in the first period when Teemu Haritkainen grabbed the puck off a faceoff, sent it ricocheting it off the left post and into the Stars net. Despite heading into the first intermission down 1-0, the Stars outshot the Barons 12-8 in the period.

Just a minute and a half into the second period, the Barons launched into a four-on-two breakaway that paved the way for Taylor Fedun to send a backhanded puck over the glove of Texas goalie Cristopher Nilstorp.  Oklahoma stretched the lead to 3-0 halfway through the period off a two-on-one breakaway that allowed C.J. Stretch to tap in a rebound off a Toni Rajala shot that bounced off the post. Justin Dowling and Mike Hedden returned the two-on-one, but Hedden’s pass missed Dowling, leaving the Stars down 3-0 headed into the second intermission.

Taking advantage of an early-period power play, the Barons went up 4-0 a minute and a half into the third with a goal by Garrett Stafford. Despite a valiant effort by Texas’ offense, Oklahoma’s Mark Arcobello scored the final goal of the game for the Barons. Despite being denied by Oklahoma’s goaltender Yann Dannis all night, the Stars refused to allow another shutout in the series. With three minutes remaining in regulation, Reilly Smith and Alex Chaisson fed Dowling for his first goal of the playoffs, and Texas’ only goal in the game.

In total, both teams launched 34 shots on net.

The Barons advance to the Western Conference final where Oklahoma City will face the Grand Rapids Griffins for a coveted spot in the Calder Cup final. In the Eastern Conference, the Syracuse Crunch hold a spot in the Eastern Conference final while the Providence Bruins and the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins head into game seven tomorrow night.