Dallas Stars: What This Crazy 2018 Offseason May Look Like

The Dallas Stars need some shaking up in order to break a losing cycle and become contenders again. But just how much shaking up could that take?

With Ken Hitchcock’s retirement still fresh and the reality of a season cut short sinking in, the Dallas fans will be doing a lot of musing, and the organization a lot of very important decision making.

It’s a reality that is scary going in: this is an offseason that could make or break the Dallas Stars in a more permanent way than last summer did. With a sudden let down in expectation, the 17-18 Stars got a bandaid solution that everyone hoped would do the trick on a more permanent basis.

Now that the final results on that effort are in, its clear that the Stars need a long-term solution to cure the losing culture Jim Nill wants to avoid feeding in Dallas. But just what kind of offseason moves are necessary for a turn around?

Clearly, the Dallas Stars are in need of a new head coach. But it doesn’t stop there. With complaints about the Stars’ oblivious silence at trade deadline among other things, its possible that even Nill (in whom we have trusted for so long) could be seeing the end of his Stars days.

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The danger in over-assessing the problem at the organizational level is apparent. Jim Nill has been key in many of the Dallas Stars’ best and most defining moves. However, in the last several seasons, he has come to be defined more by his missed opportunities than his successfully taken ones.

For the sake of discussion, let’s say you’ve got Hitchcock and Nill both replaced. Regardless of the replacements, you’ve got a radical change in Dallas and a lot of acclimating for the Stars players, who are already fresh out of a short, supposed system overhaul.

But beyond that, there’s more upending change looming on the horizon. Several players who have been cornerstones in Dallas may have already played their last games as Stars- Kari Lehtonen and Antoine Roussel, notably. On top of that, you’ve got young players grasping for permanence on the team and star players (looking at you, Tyler Seguin) who may be changing the Stars’ salary cap landscape in the very near future.

The frustrating thing is that on paper, all these changes and shufflings lend themselves to creating a very pinched, unsettled, confused Stars team. The even more frustrating part? They’re already all of those things. It seems that the Stars’ performance this season and their failure to deliver on some high expectations has a lot of folks split down the middle in terms of what they believe could save the Stars.

Do you overhaul the whole thing? Clean house and start with a blank slate? Or do you change out the pieces one by one, testing the success of their role in the larger machine slowly and over time?

I’m inclined to argue that the Stars don’t need everything upended all at once. They clearly need to find a system that fits for them, and one that Jamie Benn can get traction leading under. They’ll have to find this regardless, with their coaches position open. And during an offseason where we may be saying goodbye to a few familiar faces, I️ don’t think we should throw away everything and replace it with something shiny and new.

Next: Dallas Stars Close Chapter With Ken Hitchcock’s Retirement

Nothing the Stars do or change will have them transforming overnight into 18-19 Stanley Cup champions. I️ firmly believe that a winning culture is one built over time, slowly enough that the foundation is firm and it yields results time and time again. Stars fans, myself included, just want some relief right now, but we need to be patient and wait for long-term results.

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