The Dallas Stars are in Nashville tonight to face off with the surging Predators. Their roster, however, looks significantly different than it has. It will be up to them to adjust to the changes and bounce back in a big way because, well, that’s what good teams do.
Monday night wasn’t an altogether terrific night for the Dallas Stars.
The Stars entered Monday with hopes high and an opportunity to gain ground in the playoff race. They were set to go up against a struggling Ottawa Senators team that found themselves in the bottom three in the NHL standings.
And somehow, the Senators walked away with the two points in an overtime victory. Dallas was able to claw back once again, this time from a late 2-1 deficit, and force an extra period. But they could not get the job done in OT and fell 3-2.
While another late comeback and one point is impressive, it could have been better. For the majority of last night’s game, it looked as though the Stars were playing to the level of their opponent. They looked slow and sluggish at times and could not put together a consistent and lasting performance.
Dallas Stars
If the team that played Tampa Bay last Thursday had shown up, Dallas likely would have won the game by two or three goals. But that didn’t happen. The Dallas Stars now sit at 80 points on the year and have a four-point lead on the outside of the playoff bubble.
Still, getting one point against a struggling team isn’t an ideal way to win a spot in the playoff race. It’s almost as if the Stars got comfortable after a big win against St. Louis on Saturday and settled down to the level of their opponent (again). But there’s no time to dwell on the past, especially considering the new challenge that the Stars will face tonight.
The Dallas Stars are in Nashville tonight to take on the surging Predators. The Preds have won eight games in a row and sit comfortably in first place in the Central Division. They are also one point out of first place in the entire league.
On short rest and a disappointing loss, the Stars will have to turn their effort around and take down an NHL juggernaut. That’s not easy to do on a back-to-back, but the Stars need to make it happen in order to earn their prominence and reputation as a playoff contender back.
But it’s going to be harder than it ever has before up to this point in the season. That’s because for the first time in a while, the Stars are going through a significant injury plague.
Both defenseman Esa Lindell and forward Radek Faksa missed last night’s game against Ottawa and will also miss tonight’s game. Lindell and Faksa are both regular starters and serve in multiple roles in the Stars lineup, so losing them is a critical blow.
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And on top of that, the Stars also lost starting goaltender Ben Bishop to a lower-body injury after the first period on Monday night. Kari Lehtonen, who was already the projected starter for Tuesday night, had to play an extra 40+ minutes as a result. These injuries tack on to the already-injured Martin Hanzal and, all of a sudden, the Stars are missing a good chunk of their starting lineup
That’s not an ideal situation to be in when going up against a top-tier team after losing in a rough way just 24 hours prior. But they will have to adjust. Not just to keep their playoff hopes alive, but also because, well, that’s what good teams do. They bounce back in times of trouble and find a way to get the job done.
For a large majority of this season, the Stars have not faced any consistent or long-term adversity. Their adversity has either come in short spurts during games or lasted for two or three days at the most.
Now they are facing it in crunch time with the playoff push on and the season barreling towards its end. But there’s no time to complain or fret about it; there’s only time to adapt.
Tonight’s game will challenge the Stars in a few ways. They are in enemy territory against a high-caliber opponent with precious points on the line. They are missing some of their top role players and will have to adjust accordingly in their gameplay. It’s a tall challenge and will be another measuring stick game to see where the Stars currently sit. It will also give Dallas a chance to show how strong they can be when faced with a crisis.
It’s a lot to ask of a team that hasn’t faced a significant crisis this season. But they have to be up for the challenge if they want to keep their name in the playoff contender conversation.
This will require many players to step into new roles, such as Kari Lehtonen, who will now become the presumable starter for at least the next two games. Other gaps in places such as the penalty kill and power play need competent replacements as well.
All in all, the Stars must put last night’s subpar performance behind them and find a way to outrun the best team in the West. Sounds simple enough, right?
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Regardless of how difficult it may sound, the Dallas Stars have to find a way to get the job done. When the going gets tough, the tough get going. After all, that’s what good teams do.