Dallas Stars Digging Out Of Early Season Hole One Game At A Time

To say things have been unexpected for the Dallas Stars thus far would be an understatement. With a (2-3-0) record five games in a number of things haven’t gone according to plan, but they’re working to improve.

The Dallas Stars started the 2017-18 season with two losses and not much hope. They have since been able to come out on top in two games – both at home – and have worked to show signs of the new system working.

Home Ice Advantage

The Stars have proven that they own home ice this season having earned four of six possible points in Dallas. They seem to be motivated by the encouragement of the fans and the comfort of knowing the ice better than road conditions.

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This has been the mainstay of the season thus far. Without their ability to convert on chances at home, the Stars could quite literally be sitting with no points on the season.

It’s almost as if they’re a different team at home than on the road, which typically isn’t the case. Dallas is still able to shoot the puck at the net significantly more than their opponents while in other buildings, but the quality of chances is vastly different.

Once as they can turn their home game into a road version, the Stars will finally be able to own their system. Ultimately, they need to win a game in their white jerseys sooner rather than later.

New Roles

Dallas has seen different sides from a few players already this season. The most notable being that skilled forward Tyler Seguin dropped the gloves against former Star Patrik Nemeth for the first time in his career over the weekend.

While it’s great to see players step out of their comfort zones and contribute in different ways, it says a lot that No. 91 felt the need to do something he had quite literally never done before in his NHL career. This sentiment shouldn’t go unnoticed, but it’s also important that the Stars know their roles on the team.

If Seguin wants to incorporate fighting into his game, he should feel free to explore it. However, it’d probably be best for him to stick to focusing on offense.

Next: Three Players Who Will Shine Bright For Stars This Year

Step by Step

All things considered, the Stars aren’t in the worst place possible. They’ve been able to find some sort of system that seems to be working at least marginally, it’s just about translating that to their road game now.

The season has just begun and Dallas is still trying to figure itself out as a team, but failing to find a rhythm early can be detrimental to future success.