Dallas Stars Seeking Defensive Diversity

Sometimes uniformity is a good thing. When you’re obeying traffic laws on the highway and hoping everyone else is doing the same, when you’re grilling a steak, when you’re trying to survive in a dystopian society. However, one place uniformity does not belong, the Dallas Stars have proven, is on the blue line. When all your defenders are 6’0 or 6’0 adjacent and somewhere in the neighborhood of 200 lbs, with the overwhelming majority of them left-handed shooters, well. What you end up with is a whole lot of uniformity, in both size and skill.

Which apparently loses hockey games.

This dynamic of failing uniformity makes sense in the context of- dare I even write the despised words- last season. The defensive end fell into a pretty nasty rut, but pulled itself out by the finish of the season, when a little bit more diversity seemed to make itself at home on the blue line.

A couple of younger guys from the Texas Stars got an extended stay in the league, the largest of which was definitely defenseman Oleksiak, at 6’7 and 250 lbs. Combined with the efforts of Klingberg (one of currently only two right-handed defensemen) and the rest of the group, just a few subtle changes like these were enough to amplify the D-core’s energy and will to win.

So what have we learned from the disastrous object lesson that was last season? Hopefully a lot of things, but most important for us in the moment is this: that diversity in both size and skill is absolutely crucial for an efficient blue line.

Jim Nill has expressed satisfaction with the current defense and also excitement about the prospects coming up in the system. “You can’t rush the young defensemen,” he said in a conference call after the signing of Johnny Oduya, “…we have to be patient. That’s where the [veteran defensemen] are so important. Our expectations are to win, but we still have to develop and there is a fine line between those.”

Even from Nill’s perspective, variety is not only the spice of life but also the lifeblood of any effective defense. The intermingling of veterans and rookies, different sizes and different skills ensures that there is depth and strength on the blue line. It’s like building a brick wall. Yeah, sure, it’s a brick wall, but you’re going to need more than bricks to get the job done. Without mortar and the right tools and time elapsed, you’re going to have a pretty weak, useless wall. One that certainly doesn’t stop pucks.

So what is it that Jim Nill sees in the Dallas Stars’ imminent and slightly-less-imminent future that seems to assure him that the wall he’s been working to patch up is going to stand? A quick look at the Stars’ prospects and their projected next-season defense will reveal rosters teaming with diversity- skill and size wise. And in the midst of this variety, Nill shows that he’s also not afraid to take chances, make mistakes, and get messy for the sake of helping the Stars find their sweet spot.

In early July, Dallas Stars prospects participated in Development Camp, and developed much more than just camaraderie and a sense of community. On and off ice training and exercises slotted new Stars defensive prospects like 2015 draftee Chris Martenet in with more seasoned veterans of the camp. Several of these defensemen really impressed at the development camp, brightening the future of the Stars’ defense.

You have guys like Julius Honka, who won a gold medal with team Finland at the 2014 World Junior Championship as the youngest player on the roster. Nill had only praise for the 18-year old, calling him “highly skilled” and able to “run a power play. We are excited about his potential.” He’s still got some growing to do, but as a right-handed shooter with some large-scale experience, the Stars can definitely use his abilities down the road.

In a similar vein you have Esa Lindell, who was also a powerhouse for Finland at World Juniors. At 6’3, the 20 year old “has the right stuff” and, if all goes well, should be joining the AHL in the span of the next few seasons.

Dallas Stars defensive prospects have demonstrated rapidly developing skills, but the Stars also have some big kids on hand. Like, big ones (no typos to follow, I promise). Chris Martenet, drafted this summer, stands at 6’7. Finnish defenseman Miro Karjalainen is 6’5, as are American defensemen Troy Vance and Canadian Patrick Sanvido. All of these guys are notable for their size, which, admittedly, for young players, takes time to fully grow into. But guys that size are going to have killer wing spans and be super tough to go up against- a type of brick wall mentality that the Stars could really use.

The big complaint (pun intended, maybe…) about big hockey players is that they sometimes don’t have the skating skill of their smaller, more nimble, mostly forward counterparts. And I’m not saying it’s not true. What I am saying is that when Jamie Benn was coming up, the scouts had some pretty blunt and unflattering words about his skating skills, or perceived lack thereof. And now, well, you know. And that’s all I’m going to say about that.

So there’s good reason for Nill, and fans for that matter, to be optimistic about Dallas’ defensive future. But Nill has said himself that the time to win is now. What are the Stars doing about their current roster to ensure that we don’t get a repeat of- gosh, I’m typing it again- last season?

Well, have no fear, because if we know anything at all it’s that Jim Nill is to be trusted. We’re all well up to date with the changes he’s made this summer and the benefits these moves have added to the defensive core in terms of both size and skill.

The addition of Johnny Oduya is invaluable, and I’m not even being a little bit dramatic about it. In terms of large defensemen, he’s not a huge guy. But he adds playoff experience and leadership ability, not to mention the ever-important skill of keeping cool under pressure.

Stephen Johns, too, is going to become an important part of the Stars’ defense. At 6’3(/4?) and 229 lbs, Johns brings to the team, from Nill’s perspective, “an element of size and physicality.” The fact that he shoots right and that Blackhawks fans (the ones who are informed enough to know when they’ve lost a promising prospect) are mourning his departure, just add to his allure.

And of course you have the current defensemen in the Stars’ system. Their *previous* mess-ups give them a bad rep, sure, but at the end of the day, they are good players. Klingberg, obviously, having lead the league in rookie defensemen scoring with 40 P in 65 GP, is a gem. And there are players (Goligoski, Demers, Jordie Benn) that Nill says are solid and reliable- stable fixtures around which to build with the younger guys coming up. And with the right complementary pieces and the wind of a fresh season under them, they might just prove themselves to be so.

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So there are plenty of good reasons to believe Jim Nill when he says that “one of these days we’re going to wake up with a pretty solid core of defensemen.” But wasn’t he also the same one who said that potential is just a word until you do it?

Well, there are a couple possible ways that the Stars can “do it”, so to speak. With the roster currently holding 8 defensemen, the question seems to be: will the Stars stick to the 12 forward/6 defensemen standard game roster or move to a more intuitively appealing 11/7 roster?

While I’m throwing out all the inspirational Jim Nill quotes, I might as well include this one: “You can never have enough defensemen.” The 7 defensemen system clicks with the GM, who is content to let the players and up-and-comers battle it out for roster spots in training camp.

Realistically, this could be a great system for the Dallas Stars. It’s the same approach that the Tampa Bay Lightning reverted to for playoffs this summer. While utilizing the 11F/7D setup, they went 9-5, whereas their record was 5-7 when they employed the standard system.

So here it is, black and white:

The perks. This set-up would help the Stars in developing all the younger D-men that I was getting you all hype about earlier. We’ve got so many young, promising players who just need more time and experience to take their play to the next level- the winning level. This system can offer that.

Also, the 11/7 set-up is not only good for offering extra opportunities for experience, but also for working on specialized roles within the D-core. Even strength, penalty killing- we can work on honing players specifically for these roles and then utilizing them when our roster can carry more defensive players and offer them more experiential opportunity.

Now, the downfalls. Like everything else in life, this system is a give and take. The extra defensive spot on the roster would come at the cost of one of the forward spots- most likely a spot designated for young, developing forwards such as Curtis McKenzie or Brett Ritchie, both of whom could start their season in the AHL under this system. While we are all familiar with the Stars’ willingness to use scratching as a disciplinary measure, this system would inevitably lead to the consistent scratching of healthy forwards.

While these are notable downsides to consider, we must also keep in mind that the Stars are trying to fix their defensive problems (like I needed to remind you, right?). Their Development Camp has demonstrated the emergence of great depth and potential for future defensive cores, and Training Camp this September will no doubt yield even more impressive results in terms of defensive growth for the nearer future. Implementing a new system such as the 11F/7D tactic might be the extra little shove the Stars need to really hit their stride and take off.

We’ve seen what the Dallas Stars can do with sameness. And I think we can definitely do better. With the incorporation of a little diversity and a system that can amplify the complementary nature of dissimilar players, we could find ourselves halfway through this season with a defense we don’t even recognize. And- I know you’re tracking with me here- that’s definitely a good thing.

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