Mar 9, 2013; Glendale, AZ, USA; Dallas Stars defenseman Alex Goligoski (33) during the first period against the Phoenix Coyotes at Jobing.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-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.

Alex Goligoski

It was the most controversial trade of the 2011-2012 season; Alex Goligoski headed to Dallas while Matt Niskanen and James Neal made their way to Pittsburgh. He signed a five-year contract with the Stars, good through the 2015-2016 season. In his final season as a Penguin, Goligoski scored nine goals, recorded 22 assists and closed out the season with at positive 20 in the plus/minus. Since 2008, Goligoski finished each full year with at least 30 points.

Since moving to Dallas, the 33-year-old Minnesota native’s performance hasn’t yielded such impressive results as his time in Pittsburgh, including the 2008-2009 season when the Penguins won the Stanley Cup; but Goligoski’s talent and ability certainly hasn’t gone to waste. Last season, he scored nine goals, tying his NHL-high from the year prior while playing with Pittsburgh.

This year, he would’ve given his career-high in assists a run for its money, and led the team in assists, recording 24 through just the first half of the post-lockout season. And on January 26, Goligoski recorded his 100th career assist against the St. Louis Blues. He also led the team in the plus/minus, finishing the season at positive four. While his string of assists began just four games into the season, he didn’t score his first goal until the end of March against the Minnesota Wild.

As a member of the defensive squad, Goligoski’s overall performance this season doesn’t escape criticism, and it seemed when a puck slid beyond the blue line and into neutral ice, Goligoski was more often than not the individual watching it glide by. His 5’11” 181-pound stature also didn’t provide much of a screen for goalie Kari Lehtonen.

In reviewing Goligoski’s season all-around, and remembering how often he watched as the puck nonchalantly passed the blue line, it’s hard to say it was a stellar year. But the numbers don’t lie, and Goligoski’s ability to put the puck where it needs to be for top goal-scorers highlights the importance of his position on the team. Taking all facets of the season into account, I give Alex Goligoski a B+ for the 2012-2013 season.

Goal Scoring: C

Assists: A

Plus/Minus: A

On-ice presence and performance: B

Mar 25, 2013; Dallas, TX, USA; Minnesota Wild center Kyle Brodziak (21) scores the game winning goal against Dallas Stars goalie Kari Lehtonen (32) during the third period at the American Airlines Center. The Wild defeated the Stars 7-4. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

For the first time since 2002, the Minnesota Wild beat the Dallas Stars in regulation at American Airlines Center 7-4, Monday night. The victory pushed the Wild’s win streak to six in a row, and put the Stars at 1-1-0 at the front-end of a five-game home stand.

Dallas launched into the first period with Alex Goligoski scoring the first goal of the night just five minutes into the game.  The Wild returned the goal two minutes later though, as Zach Parise grabbed his own rebound from Stars goalie Kari Lehtonen to tie the game at one.  With only three minutes left in the period, the Stars went on the power play. Jaromir Jagr landed a shot behind Wild goalie Niklas Backstrom just 20 seconds in, giving the Stars a 2-1 lead and pushing Jagr further to the top of the team’s goal-scorers with 14 for the season.

The Wild refused to stay behind long, and just three minutes into the second period, returned Jagr’s goal when Mikko Koivu snuck a shot through Stars goalie Kari Lehtonen’s legs. The Stars stayed determined to battle back though, as Trevor Daley tied the game yet again. Minnesota appeared to take the lead off an attempted rebound by Parise, but it was ruled he pushed Lehtonen into the net while trying to shove the puck past the goal line, nullifying the goal. The Wild did manage to grab the lead halfway through the period when yet another shot by Parise found its way to the back of the Stars’ goal. The Wild grabbed the lead again with a wrist shot by Matt Cullen that sent the Stars into the second intermission down 4-3.

The Stars appeared to find a second wind headed into the third period, but any breath of fresh air that came on the ice, left just as quickly. Dallas’ Phillip Larsen tied the game seven minutes into the period, hinting a close finale would ensue. But the Wild had a different plan in mind, and scored three consecutive, unanswered goals in the span of seven minutes. Minnesota’s Kyle Brodziak grabbed what would be the final lead while the Wild were on a four minute penalty kill. Dany Heatley bumped the score to 6-4 with a minute and a half remaining in the period, and after Lehtonen left the Stars’ net to allow an extra attacker on offense, Pierre-Marc Bouchard landed an empty-net goal with only 16 seconds left on the clock.

The Stars face the Wild again Friday night at 7:30 p.m. at American Airlines Center. The game will be shown on Fox Sports Southwest.