Dallas Stars Lose Tyler Seguin, Yet Still Win Big
Tyler Seguin will hopefully be back for the first game of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. But so far, it looks like the Dallas Stars will be able to keep winning even in his absence.
It’s interesting how the 2015-2016 Dallas Stars work. One moment they are losing an entirely winnable game, the next they are shocking their fan base with a somewhat unexpected, dominant victory. That’s what makes them fun, I guess.
The Stars were back at it again on Saturday night, facing off against the New York Islanders in the warm confines of the AAC. Only this time, it looked like the Stars would be playing this game with a bit of a handicap.
Dallas entered the game without one of their superstars in the lineup for the first time this season. In a game against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday night, first line sniper Tyler Seguin was cut by a skate blade on his achilles heel.
The cut did extensive damage, but luckily it was not enough to require intense surgery and a long recovery. Seguin had a repair surgery done Friday morning and will be sidelined for the next 3-4 weeks.
It’s as good a case scenario as it could be considering where he got cut,” Stars GM Jim Nill told the media. “Fifteen percent is a small-grade cut, which is good news. Another 1/8 of an inch it probably would have severed everything, so it was as good of news as it could be other than it’s just really time to heal now is the biggest thing.”
So they lucked out on that one. But the Dallas Stars still have a difficult test in front of them. They will have to play the remainder of the regular season without their top-line center. Considering they are in a battle not only for first place in the Central Division, but also the Western Conference as a whole, things are not going to be easy.
At least, that’s what most Stars fans thought before last night. But after the game against the Islanders, there might be no need for worry.
The Dallas Stars welcomed the New York Islanders to the AAC on Saturday night in their first matchup without Seguin. The worst part of it was mixing the Seguin injury with the Stars recent track record against the Islanders. Since Lindy Ruff took over before the 2013-2014 season started, the Islanders have put up a record of 4-0-1 against Dallas, and have scored 26 goals in the five contests put together.
Last night, New York did not get to add on to that total of 26. They also received their first blemish in the regulation loss column as well.
In a high intensity and entertaining matchup, the Stars prevailed in a number of ways to knock off the Isles and once again take sole control of first place in the division and conference. They received depth scoring from Cody Eakin and Patrick Eaves, and Ales Hemsky put in the empty netter to finish off the 3-0 victory.
The defense was uptight, not giving many high quality chances. Kari Lehtonen stood tall in the net for a 27-save shutout, making it the 34th of his career.
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Overall, it was one of the most well-rounded games the Dallas Stars have played this year against a playoff-bound team.
The main thing that Stars fans can take from this victory besides the excitement is the fact that when they focus, they can clearly do it all. Their goaltending can be sharp as a tack, their defense can shut down offensive assaults from opponents, and their offense can produce even in the absence of a skilled center.
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It’s all a mindset for the Stars at this point. The playoffs are just a little over three weeks from starting, and they will need each part of their game to be in flawless showing if they want to make a run. Last night’s game was a perfect example of what happens when the team comes together as a whole in wake of hard times. Let’s hope they can continue to persevere.