The Dallas Stars will play at home for a large chunk of the next three weeks. This upcoming holiday homestand gives them a great opportunity to get ahead in the standings. But it could also bury them if they aren’t prepared.
Jack Frost is beginning to nip at noses, the sleigh bells are ringing, and the traffic is (not) terrific. Yes, the Christmas and holiday season is fast approaching. In fact, Christmas day is just six days away, and the Dallas Stars are hoping for an extra special early Christmas present.
The Stars returned home to Dallas on Saturday night after a four-game road trip to the Northeast. It was four games played over a six-day span and the Stars posted a 2-1-1 record. So, it was a pretty successful trip for a team that had previously lost three straight.
But it still didn’t seem to be good enough. The Dallas Stars slipped to the second wild card spot in the Western Conference standings during the trip, and the only reason they stayed in the playoff hunt was due to an overtime loss to Philadelphia.
And now they are “home for the holidays,” as Perry Como, The Carpenters, and many other famous Christmas artists would say. The Dallas Stars will play nine of their next ten games at home, and the stakes could not be much higher for the team.
Dallas Stars
Over the next 26 days, the Dallas Stars will play 10 games. Nine of those will be within the lovely confines of the American Airlines Center, and there will be plenty of break time in between. That’s a nice change of pace for a team that played nine games in the first 16 days of December.
Within this span is also a six-day break that will run from January 7-12. All in all, the Dallas Stars will have the opportunity to take this upcoming stretch at a bit more relaxed and focused pace.
But that doesn’t mean that things will be easier. In fact, the Stars will be in an even more compromised and pressured position than they have been.
In the past month, the Stars have seen a significant fluctuation in production and results. They experienced a massive high with a season high five-game win streak, hit a rutty low with three losses in a row against some of the elite teams in the West, and most recently posted a pretty average record on their road trip.
And now they have a chance to end the 2017 calendar year on a high note. But that will only happen if the Stars can play their best hockey of the season. That’s primarily because of the opposition they are up against.
The Dallas Stars kick off a three-game homestand tonight against the Washington Capitals. The Caps are one of the hottest teams in the NHL right now after winning seven of their last eight contests. They have moved from “cellar dwellers” to one of the top spots in the Metropolitan Division standings.
On Thursday night, the Stars will welcome the Chicago Blackhawks back to the AAC. Dallas is already 2-0-0 against Chicago this season, but the Hawks have won five in a row and look like a completely revamped team. It isn’t going to be easy to snag what could be a crucial Central Division win.
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And somehow, the road continues getting tougher. Two days after the Blackhawks are in town, the Nashville Predators will return to Big D. The Stars have lost their first two games to Nashville by a combined score of 9-3 this season. The Preds have made easy work of Dallas, and that has to change if the Stars want true divisional success. It will be their final game before the Christmas break and they would really benefit from a win. But it won’t be easy, considering Nashville is currently the no. 1 team in the Western Conference and no. 2 team in the NHL.
Following a three day break for the Christmas holiday, the Stars will travel north to Minnesota. They will face off with a Wild team that trails them by just one point in the standings at the moment with a game in hand. Minnesota is the only Central team that Dallas has yet to face this season, so it should be an interesting debut matchup.
And then a six-game homestand ensues. The Stars will take on the Blues, Sharks, Blue Jackets, Devils, Oilers, and Avalanche between December 29 and January 13. All but two (Oilers and Avalanche) of these teams are currently sitting in a playoff spot, and both Edmonton and Colorado are within six points of Dallas. So things are tight and every game will matter.
Divisional matchups, tough matchup against the top teams, and an unusual schedule with actual gaps will test the Stars over the next few weeks. The holidays are a time for peace and goodwill, but can also be a time for testing your sanity. The Stars will get an up front and personal experience of that test.
The Dallas Stars are home for the holidays, and that comes with a lot of pressure to succeed. A few losses here and there could prove to be fatal when April rolls around. A few wins piled on top of each other could easily vault Dallas into the top three in the Central Division. It’s all about how they play it out. But a .500 homestand is not going to do the trick.
The halfway point of the season is quickly approaching and Dallas is currently holding a playoff spot, which is good news. But things are airtight in the standings, and two or three losses could pin them in the cellar.
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This mass of home games will tell a lot about the Stars ability to adapt and their level of compete. It could also determine a lot about how their season will ultimately shape up. The Stars are 10-4-0 at home this season and seem to be clicking when at the AAC. We’ll see if that trend continues over the next three weeks.
After all, as the carol says, there is no place like home for the holidays.