Dallas Stars End Season With Victory, Immediate Changes

The Dallas Stars’ last game was a sign of hopeful things to come as the team announces changes right out of the off-season gate.

Th-th-that’s all folks. We all woke up in this morning to a world that will be devoid of Dallas Stars hockey for a matter of months, but strangely, that feels more like a relief than a burden in multiple ways.

I’m sure you just read that like a highly discontented insult, but that interpretation could not be further from the truth. After braving the rough and stormy sea of this frustrating season, the Stars themselves (and of course, the fans) deserve a little bit of calmness.

And by calmness, I’m referring to the fact that there will be no hockey games. In every other arena, however, I think we all know that calmness will not be the name of the game. If the Dallas Stars have ever had en eventful off-season, I think this one is gearing up to outdo it.

We’re all very much aware of the potential changes that will probably be occurring for the Stars this summer in order to shake the team dynamic up enough to turn it into a winning one. And that is another stormy sea that the Stars (and of course, the fans) will brave with grace.

But before all of that is upon us, let’s take this opportunity to live in the past for a little bit while there’s still something fresh in the past worth reliving. The Dallas Stars ended their season with a heroic effort, beating some pretty dooming odds in a 4-3 shoot-out victory. With nothing much left to play for but the fans, the boys really stepped it up and gave us something to stir our hopes.

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In a lot of ways, this game proved that the Stars are still capable of what we all feel that, way down in our hears, they are. It also didn’t depart too far from the Stars’ usual script, taking us on an edge of your seat ride that paid off in the end.

The Stars were up 2-0, but let that lead slip as they fell to a 3-2 score behind the Avalanche in the third period. Tyler Seguin stepped up for the tying goal that pushed the game into overtime. John Klingberg thought he had won it in overtime, but the goal was called off and a offside ruling was made, pushing the game into a shootout.

Seguin was yet again the goal-scorer there, and Kari Lehtonen stepped up and saved all 3 shots from Colorado to get the Stars their season-ending win. The players’ post-game sentiments seemed to mirror almost exactly those of the team’s fans.

Devin Shore and Seguin both remarked that driver behind last night’s win was simply the desire to end the season on a high note with some entertaining hockey for all the loyal fans who’d stuck with the team through a rough season.

Jamie Benn also expressed his confusion and dismay about the way this season turned out:

"“You kind of wonder where it went. It seems like a wasted opportunity…At the start of the year we had high expectations for this team, coming off a pretty good season the year before, and it didn’t live up to its expectations.”"

I mean, we were all thinking it, right? But however disappointing this season has been for the fans, it’s only been more so for the players, who will be even more eager than we are for a much better comeback.

And as per the news from the Dallas Stars today, after four years with the Stars, Lindy Ruff will not be a part of that potential comeback season. However, just as Benn also noted, we all have to roll with the punches and take whatever changes are necessary in stride in hopes of becoming better next hockey year.

Nill, too, has a hopeful outlook, and encouraged fans not to worry or think that the season was wasted.

"“It’s been a disappointing season for [the players, for the ownership, for the management, and for the coaches. It’s been a tough, tough year. I’ve been in this business a long time, and this has been one of the biggest grinds I’ve seen. You name it, whatever could happen has happened this year. That’s just the way it is. This is going to get over with, and it’s going to be a quick turnaround. This isn’t going to be a rebuild, and we’re not going to have to start drafting high. We have the pieces, and this is going to turn around quick. Just trust these players, they are going to bounce back, and we are going to be back on top pretty quick.”"

Knowing that the Dallas Stars don’t have years and years to go before they start playing the kind of hockey we all love and remember is a great note to end the season on. We all just have to hang on, know that any changes that come are going to make the team stronger, and start getting hyped up for a great next season.

Next: Dallas Stars: A Supporter's Guide To Playoff Fandom

In the meantime, we’ll be down in the off-season trenches with you all. If you could pick one off-season move to strengthen the team, what would it be? Let us know in the comments!