It’s time for a homecoming. Jordie Benn is back in Dallas tonight to fight against the Dallas Stars for the first time since being traded last year.
The Montreal Canadiens are in town tonight to take on the Dallas Stars at 7:30. It’s the first meeting between the two teams this year and it carries a lot of significance.
But the significance doesn’t necessarily have to do with the standings or anything in regards to the success of either team. Instead, this game is turning out to be quite the homecoming for players from both clubs.
Montreal has become a new home for many former Dallas Stars, specifically over the eight or nine months. After the Jordie Benn-Greg Pateryn trade just before the 2017 NHL trade deadline, both Antti Niemi and Ales Hemsky have joined up with the Canadiens. Hemsky was signed to a one-year deal during the offseason and Niemi was recently claimed off of waivers. Both played with the Stars last season.
In addition, a few former Canadiens have made their way down to warmer weather in Dallas. Pateryn came down as a result of the trade last season, and Alexander Radulov signed with the Stars during the summer. Considering both teams have plenty of players who have worn both of the jerseys represented tonight, this game promises to be a fun one.
Dallas Stars
But while the Montreal media focuses on Radulov’s first time facing his former team, the Stars media has shifted their focus to Jordie. Hemsky did not travel with the team due to a concussion and Niemi is playing the backup/third string goalie role. That leaves Benn as the sole former Star in the lineup for the Habs tonight.
That works out well, considering Jordie was probably the “most loved” player of the three during his time in Dallas. The elder Benn played his first game for the Stars on Jan. 3, 2012. It also happened to be his NHL debut.
Benn played parts of six seasons with the Dallas Stars and helped keep the blue line up and running. Over that span, Benn turned into a confident and capable leader for the Dallas defense.
There were plenty of ups and downs throughout that six year span, which is perfectly reasonable for a depth defender. For example, Jordie would probably like to forget about the atrocious 2014-15 season. But in contrast, his 2015-16 and 2016-17 performances were impressive. Those performances added up to give him a respectable trade value when the deadline came around in February.
With the deadline looming and the plans ahead for the expansion draft in the summer of 2017, it was in the best interest of both GM Jim Nill and the Stars to deal Benn to a new team.
As the older brother of Jamie Benn, it wasn’t always easy living up to the standards that the Benn name held in Dallas. And when Jordie didn’t meet the bar, many were quick to criticize his play and wonder why it didn’t live up to the play of the Dallas captain.
Editor In Leaf
“Obviously there’s a bit of a shadow when your brother is the superstar of the Stars,” Benn said on Tuesday morning. “I never thought about it like that but obviously everybody could see it. It was nice to get away and just play my game and be myself.”
The 30-year-old rounded out his skills during his few years in Dallas and became an effective NHL defender. He learned how to play in a variety of situations and provide a determined presence in the defensive zone.
When he was traded to Montreal, he assimilated quickly and even became one of their most consistent and capable defensemen. He now looks to have a promising career ahead with the Habs. But he won’t let that affect the roots he has with Dallas.
“It was funny walking in this morning seeing a couple of the old guys,” Benn said. “Klingberg was making bird noises or something like that when I was walking in, but it was good to see them.”
“I talked to most of them as I was walking in. Obviously being here for quite some time, you get pretty good relationships with everybody. It’s good to say hi, but come game time we’re friends off for 60 minutes.”
The Benn parents will also be in attendance. It will be their first time watching their two sons play against each other in person. The Stars took on the Canadiens at the tail end of last season, but the game was in Montreal. The family had dinner last night to catch up.
“Same old, same old dinner with the Benn family,” Benn said with a chuckle. “Little bit of arguing, little bit of pictures, and arguing over what jersey my mom and dad are gonna wear to the game tonight.”
Jordie Benn’s first time back in Dallas not wearing Victory Green will be an interesting ride. It’s two teams still trying to establish their footing, and that always makes for a good game.
When asked about what he expects from the fans tonight, Benn was rather quick and decisive on the question.
“No, I don’t expect much,” Benn said. “I’m here to steal two points and that’s all I’m worried about.”
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There’s a good chance that Benn will receive a warm welcome from the fan base that watched him grow and mold into an NHL-level defender. The second part of that quote, however, might not be as surefire.