Dallas Stars: Frustration Boiling Over As Playoff Hopes Begin To Linger

This road was never going to be an easy one, but now it seems tougher than ever. The Dallas Stars are beginning to slip when it matters most, and that could be fatal to their playoff hopes.

Not long ago, the Dallas Stars had won five games in a row and looked like one of the most dominant teams in the NHL. It’s funny how quickly things can change.

Here we sit on Thursday, Feb. 22. The Stars have lost three of their past four games. In those games, they have been outscored by a deficit of 14-4. After getting blown out by a score of 5-2 on Sunday against San Jose, Dallas responded last night with a disheartening 2-0 loss to the Anaheim Ducks.

The problem with last night’s loss is that it generated a lot of frustration. Ryan Miller, a goaltender well past his prime and serving as the backup for Anaheim, stopped a perfect 41 shots faced from the Stars. He even turned aside 24 shots in the third period alone, which set a record for most shots in a period for Dallas in franchise history.

It’s not that the Dallas Stars did anything bad, though. They put up a quality effort for the majority of the game, generated some quality chances, and played shutdown defense. They only allowed one power play goal and an odd shorthanded goal that was merely a result of poor timing and miscommunication.

Dallas Stars

But that’s what is frustrating. The Stars did a lot of good things last night and very well could have won the game. Instead, they lost in the most aggravating way possible and are now on the verge of a potential collapse in the playoff race.

That in itself is practically unbelievable. After all, the Stars are 34-22-4 with 72 points on the year. They are on pace for 94 points this season, which is a respectable average and typically gets a team into the postseason.

But this season is unlike any other in terms of the playoff race. In the Western Conference, there are still 11 teams that are very much still in the race to the postseason. There are eight teams in the West that sit within six points of each other across the two divisions. Considering that only 20-25 games remain in the season, that’s impressive.

It just goes to show that there will be no easy road into the Stanley Cup Playoffs this season. The Dallas Stars know that and have done a good job at adapting over the past few months. That adaptation, however, may be slipping.

After defeating the St. Louis Blues last Friday, Dallas finally claimed third place in the Central Division after months of chasing it. And though the Stars lost to Anaheim on Wednesday, they still sit in third. But their position is quickly becoming less and less certain.

At the moment, the Blues still sit at 72 points along with Dallas. St. Louis sits in the first wild card spot, with the Minnesota Wild close behind at the 71-point mark. And then you have the Los Angeles Kings, Calgary Flames, and Colorado Avalanche all clustered up just outside the playoff picture.

So while the Stars are safe at the moment, there are plenty of teams encroaching quickly. Another loss could be detrimental to Dallas and potentially kick them out of the playoff picture entirely. How crazy is that?

And that’s where the frustration comes in. The Dallas Stars are beginning to slip when it really counts. But even when they push, they still come up short. Now the pressure is closing in and every loss seems potentially fatal. That’s aggravating and also unsettling.

The Dallas Stars cannot seem to get a win when it matters most right now, regardless of how they play. They jumped into the driver’s seat on Friday against St. Louis but now can’t seem to shift the car into drive.

That will prove to be entirely detrimental down the stretch, or potentially even over the next few days. Things are too tight in the standings to commit continuous errors.

Next: Leading Roles Need To Pick Up The Pace For Stars

The Stars are in Los Angeles tonight for one final bout in their California road trip before returning home. It’s another critical shot at two points. Will the Stars frustration turn into motivation? Or will  they continue down this path of uncertainty and approach ever closer to the playoff wall?