Dallas Stars: Final Checks Before 2018 NHL Trade Deadline
The NHL Trade Deadline clock is quickly approaching midnight (2 p.m. CT) and the Dallas Stars are still quiet. If they are destined to make a trade, it’s now or never.
If you’ve ever had to meet a deadline, you likely know how the Dallas Stars feel right now.
There may be stress, confidence, uncertainty, or a mixture of multiple feelings. And while there is an exciting connotation to approaching a deadline, there is also a feeling of nervousness. It all depends on how you handle it.
The Dallas Stars are running out of time to make a decision on how they will handle the 2018 NHL Trade Deadline. Maybe they’ve already come up with their stance and are deciding to stay quiet. Or maybe they are still looking to take one last swing at the market.
Whatever the case may be, the number of hours they have left to act can now be portrayed on two hands. In other words, deadline day is finally here and there are only a few hours left to make a move.
Dallas Stars
Even though the trade deadline didn’t catch the Stars off guard by any means, the pressure is likely still creeping in.
A lot can go down in these next few hours. Or nothing could go down and the Dallas Stars could move on as if a thing such as the trade deadline never existed. But which way will they go?
The Stars have been on quite an influential journey over the past month. At the beginning of February, they were just starting up a hot streak and seemed to finally be finding their potential. Their offense was on fire, their defense had finally turned into a lockdown unit, and both Ben Bishop and Kari Lehtonen were buying the team chances to win in the crease.
But it’s crazy how quickly things can change. Dallas went an undefeated 5-0-0 from Feb. 1 – Feb. 9, but followed the hot streak up with a shaky 2-4-0 rut that they are currently stuck in. The offense cannot seem to get contributions from any forwards outside of the top three, the defense is a shell of what it was three weeks ago, and the goaltending is starting to strike an inconsistent chord.
The Stars just seem lost on a path of uncertainty. That’s where the trade deadline is supposed to come in.
This Dallas Stars team is still very much in the fight. They currently hold the first wild card spot in the Western Conference and have complete control over their own destiny with 20 games to go in the season.
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With that being said, is now the time to beef up their lineup? Would one more top-six forward to balance out the scoring like Max Pacioretty or Evander Kane be a worthwhile endeavor? Would the return price be acceptable?
The thing is, there’s no more denying it. The ideas have been batted around for a few weeks, but today is the day. There’s no more movement after 2 p.m. and then the final playoff push truly begins.
As of 7 a.m. on Monday morning, there really haven’t even been so much as rumblings involving the Stars. But that doesn’t mean GM Jim Nill cannot make a push over the next few hours.
A few of the recent losses have shown not only that Dallas could use help on offense, but also that this team may not be destined to outlast the rest of the league and win the Stanley Cup. There is time for that to change, but it’s the current forecast.
So here we are. Feb. 26, 2018. It’s the last day for teams to work on their tests and turn them in. Once the deadline passes, all they can do is hope they made the right choices and that their score is reflected by those choices.
What will the Dallas Stars get themselves into at this deadline, if anything at all? We’ll have to wait and see. One thing is for sure: the way the Stars handle today’s deadline could drastically affect how the rest of their regular season plays out.
Next: Five Players The Stars May Target At Trade Deadline
But until the deadline hits, keep your eyes peeled and your phones/computers on and charged. Things might get crazy. This is the last tourism spot of the trip. It’s time to get the final checks in and prepare for the home stretch.