The 2017 offseason treated the Dallas Stars very well. But with all of this success, they must make sure to remember one thing: good on paper does not automatically mean good on ice. It’s up to them to make it happen.
Success is fun. Whether it’s something as small as winning a game of checkers or as big as getting a promotion at work, it’s exciting to see hard work and careful planning pay off. It’s also fun watching your favorite hockey team succeed.
The Dallas Stars did not have much success last season. As a result, the 2016-17 season was not a lot of fun.
The Stars put together a tragic 2016-17 campaign, posting a 34-37-11 record with 79 points and missing the Stanley Cup Playoffs by 15 points. They claimed sixth place in the Central Division and 11th overall in the Western Conference.
It wouldn’t necessarily have been as disappointing of a season had the Stars not won the Central Division and fallen one win short of the Western Conference Finals one season earlier with a 109-point campaign. With that fact in mind, the Dallas Stars’ 2016-17 year was a complete meltdown.
Dallas Stars
One of the bigger factors in the sharp drop-off was the Stars’ lack of activity and success in the 2016 offseason. Dallas lost a good chunk of their veteran defensive corps, decided to stick with their flawed goaltending tandem, and cut some of their depth scoring on offense during the ’16 summer and did little in an attempt to replace them. The Stars struggled heavily on defense, in net, and with scoring as a result. It was an all-around failing effort.
But luckily, the 2017 offseason brought a change of pace. Dallas Stars GM Jim Nill swung for the fences in a desperate attempt to bring significant change and he succeeded. The Stars brought in some of the top talent across the board both in free agency and on the trade market and were considered by many to have had the best offseason of any NHL team.
Improving the goaltending was critical, so the Stars went out and secured veteran goalie Ben Bishop on a long-term deal. Dallas also added defensive help by trading for Marc Methot and brought in a defensive-centered mind to coach the team in Ken Hitchcock. On offense, the Stars signed Martin Hanzal and Alexander Radulov to fill in their weak spots.
And now the Dallas Stars look ready to face the music and hit the ground running for the 2017-18 season.
But before you boldly predict Dallas to win the Stanley Cup next season, remember one thing: this team has not hit the ice yet.
One of the best things about Nill as a general manager is his ability to make a sizable splash in each offseason. If he feels there is a need for change and to bring about that change by adding a superstar piece, he knows how to properly negotiate and make the best possible deal en route to bringing a new face to the franchise.
Sometimes, this talent can push Dallas Stars fans (and even perhaps the team itself) to conclusions. In the 2014 offseason, the Stars were fresh off of breaking a five-year playoff drought and seemed to have a bright future behind a young lineup. In addition to that, Nill nailed the offseason by landing the largest piece in center Jason Spezza.
Everything looked perfect, and Dallas seemed destined to make a deep postseason run in 2015.
Nine months later, the Stars played game 82 of their season against the Nashville Predators, pushing them to seven points out of the final wild card spot in the West and moving them into an extra-long offseason.
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In other words, everything seemed perfect on paper until the Dallas Stars actually hit the ice. That’s when everything went to hell. And now that we are three years down the road, it’s easy to see all that the Stars did wrong in that seemingly perfect offseason. But that’s only because we saw firsthand what the team looked like in action.
Even after the quiet 2016 offseason, the expectations were still lofty due to the Stars’ success in the 2015-16 season.
These meltdowns need to be remembered and applied to this current offseason (and every offseason, for that matter). Nothing is guaranteed if a team is good on paper other than the fact that they have a good chance at winning you a Stanley Cup on EA Sports NHL 18.
The biggest problem that comes with a strong offseason is heightened expectations. These kinds of expectations can leave a franchise in shambles if they are not met. The Dallas Stars have learned this lesson plenty over the past few years.
It’s going to be up to the Stars to prove themselves and back up this seemingly perfect summer in the coming season. Until that happens, it seems folly to go out on a limb.
This offseason was hands down Nill’s best with the Stars to date. He made a number of excellent acquisitions and did it all while balancing the cap and roster. But this success needs to be taken with a grain of salt. The Stars cannot let it get to their heads and instead keep their focus on letting the success come from their play on the ice.
Next: Will Defense Or Goaltending Be A Worry For Stars?
It’s fun to win the offseason. But it’s even more fun to win the regular season and postseason. Is Dallas up to the challenge this year? We’ll find out starting October 6.