Dallas Stars Reportedly Hire Jim Bedard As AHL Goalie Coach

Longtime Detroit Red Wings goalie coach Jim Bedard was hired by the Dallas Stars organization today to be their next AHL goalie coach, reports say.

It seems as though the Dallas Stars are finally taking steps towards protecting and growing their future in the crease.

Kevin Woodley of NHL.com reported earlier this afternoon that the Dallas Stars had hired longtime Detroit Red Wings goaltending coach Jim Bedard.

The move was made in reaction to Mike Valley, who has been working with goalies in the Stars’ organization since 2009, telling the team that he would not be returning.

This move has yet to be confirmed by the Dallas Stars organization, but it would be a rather sizable move in regards to the Stars’ future between the pipes.

The Stars have desired consistency in net for a long time, and they got that with the signing of Ben Bishop. But that’s not the only thing to be desired within the organization’s goaltending department.

The other thing that desperately needs to be figured out is development and growth from within.

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For the past few seasons, the Stars have tried solving their goaltending problems by reaching out into the market. Kari Lehtonen, Antti Niemi, Anders Lindback, Dan Ellis, Jhonas Enroth, Richard Bachman, and so on and so forth. There’s been a variety of veterans come through, but none have stuck around for longer than two seasons, besides Lehtonen of course.

Marty Turco was the last goaltender that was a true Dallas Star grown from scratch within the organization, but he played his last game for the team in 2010. That was seven long years ago.

Since then, Dallas has struggled to find consistency and confidence in their own system. They drafted Jack Campbell with their first round pick in 2010, but that trial ended in nothing but despair and disappointment. After six years of trying to make him the next “elite” NHL starter, the Stars dealt him to the Los Angeles Kings last offseason.

Now with Ben Bishop, 30, and Kari Lehtonen, 33, presumably manning their crease for the years to come, Dallas only has one or two years before they will need a young replacement to help re-establish the team.

At the moment, it looks as though Philippe Desrosiers, Landon Bow, or Maxime Lagace will be the heir. But how will that happen if they can never even get their careers established in the AHL?

Bedard could be the answer to all of that. He spent 19 seasons with the Detroit Red Wings and helped develop some rather elite goaltenders, most recently Petr Mrazek and Jimmy Howard.

Moving him to the Texas Stars and establishing him as the newest goaltending coach could help move the young guys in a new direction and carry them to new heights. It’s all about getting ready for the big show, and Bedard could be the guy that helps prepare them.

GM Jim Nill obviously knew where he was going with this hiring. He knew that the younger goalies in the system need help in reaching the next level and that using the market can only help out for so long before it begins causing problems. He also worked with Bedard in the Detroit system for years, and the two brought home three Stanley Cups together.

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This is an excellent move for the Dallas Stars organization if the reports are true. The Stars have needed this sort of stability for a while, and now they finally have it. They can now begin developing goaltending prospects and being reassured that they finally might be able to get something out of them. This is what we call a “long-term solution.”