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Dallas Stars: Who Starts In Crease On Opening Night Poll

By Josh Clark |

The Dallas Stars crease saw a difficult progression through the 2014-2015 season. This progression, or perhaps regression, ended up being the main reason the Stars fell seven points short of a playoff spot in what was expected to be a very special and influential year.

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The Dallas Stars have entrusted their starting position to Kari Lehtonen for the past five seasons and for the majority of the time he has done enough to get by, sometimes even throwing a little extra flare in. But 2014-2015 was a true struggle for him. This would not originally be a problem for the average NHL team because they could simply lean on their backup a little more and let him carry some of the load.

Only problem is the Dallas Stars have not had a proven, competent backup on their roster since Lehtonen played the position himself behind Marty Turco in the 2009-2010. The Stars have constantly used the recycling process of bringing in a new backup during the offseason and somehow having a different one by the time the year was over.

With this obstacle in mind, GM Jim Nill decided to do things a little differently. Instead of once again recruiting a “past-his-prime” backup goaltender that would more than likely gas out after a couple of starts and force Nill’s hand to make a third straight trade for a goalie in the middle of a season.

So Nill went out and turned the tables a little bit, starting a new NHL trend. Instead of picking up a backup, he traded a seventh round pick for San Jose Sharks starter Antti Niemi. But not to replace Lehtonen or become a door operator. Instead, the two plan to challenge each other to be better this season and have a clear perspective and mindset going through the year.

They will be accountability partners with each other and hopefully help each other grow and embrace their new roles. Of course both will be losing a significant amount of playing time that they are used to, but with both of their ages [Niemi is 32 and Lehtonen is one month away from the same age] it will be important to take longer breaks and refuel while you have another starter fresh off the bench to trust in the game.

But through the preseason, it looks as though neither goalie is truly comfortable in the situation yet. With only one preseason game remaining, they need to figure it out fast. Niemi will get the final start in net on Saturday against the Chicago Blackhawks. Lehtonen is done for preseason play, going 0-3-0 and giving up 12 goals. Niemi is 1-1-0 so far, giving away 7 goals.

With neither goalie truly out-dueling the other, there may be cause for concern about opening night, especially when a fast-acting Pittsburgh Penguins offense comes to town.

But with that being said, one of them will have to start in the crease. So who should the Dallas Stars go with?

Lehtonen knows the arena and the fans better, and has a tradition going of starting on opening night the last five seasons. Niemi is coming in though and may have the slight edge in skill.

There are plenty of things that must be observed and taken into account before the decision is made. It’s the biggest night for the Dallas Stars for the next few months, and will more than likely be in front of a sellout crowd. Considering they have not won in a home opener since January 19, 2013, it might be nice to find a way and win this year. This all starts with building the crease up.

Who do you think should start for the Dallas Stars between the pipes on opening night? Make sure to cast your vote below and tell us why in the comments! Apologies to those using the Fansided mobile app as it does not support polls yet. But we encourage you to find us on Twitter, Facebook, or online and cast your vote there! Just six days remain. It’s all starting to become real. Let’s hope these Stars can find a way to turn their 1-5-0 preseason record into something good before the real stuff starts.

Next: Stars Give Three Young Forwards Big Chance In Tampa Bay

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