Dallas Stars Need Their Special Teams To Stand Out In 2018-19 Season

The Dallas Stars are shooting to make a name for themselves while also reinventing their style in the 2018-19 season. Part of that has to do with special teams, an area in which the Stars will need to be at their best in the year ahead.

19th, 13th, 23rd, and 14th are not positions to be proud of in any aspect of life. But those positions are where the Dallas Stars ended last season in power play percentage, shorthanded goals scored, short handed goals against, and penalty kill percentage.

And by the way, those numbers average out to a little more than 17th, which is surprisingly close to where the Stars ended up last year in total points (that number is closer to 19th).

But, for how little time per game that a team is on the power play (6-7 minutes) per game, 20% of all goals are scored in that time frame.

And when looking at the Dallas Stars and their special teams play over the past few seasons, there’s usually something missing. One or two areas might be doing well while another suffers. To add on to that, they seem to flip-flop with passing seasons. The bottom line is that the Stars always find a way to be average when it comes to special teams play as a whole. That has to change in the coming season as they embark on a new era and look to stay competitive in a loaded Central Division.

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So, regarding those four special team stats, here is how the Stars should prioritize their special teams heading into the preseason.

1. The Power Play

Dallas has fantastic offensive weapons. We know that, the Stars know that, and the rest of the league knows that.Tyler Seguin is one of the most feared shooters in the league. So why do they fail to meet expectations on the power play at times?

One of the issues was that they stacked their first unit. While that seems like a viable strategy at times, it leaves a lot to be desired when the first line fails to get the job done and the second line doesn’t have the proper structure or resources to produce. In the past few years, if the first line fails to score in the minute that they are on the ice, the Stars are about out of luck. Spreading out the wealth can create more opportunities.

2. Short Handed Goals Against

It is unacceptable to allow this to happen and to be 23rd in the league is a bit embarrassing. If the reasoning for this shortcoming was because of too much aggression on the power play in 2017-18, which resulted in a higher power play percentage and the short handed goals against stat was the same, it seems like a fair trade off. However, it is not. Spreading the shooters out and keeping the defense balanced could help solve this issue as well.

3. Penalty Kill

The Stars did fine in this category, thanks in large part to Ken Hitchcock’s defensive philosophy. I would have moved this one to number two except for what is asked of the players in this scenario. Being successful while down a man for two minutes involves a lot of blocking shots, closing off the shooting passing lanes, and getting timely changes. The Stars did well with this last season for the most part. Let’s hope they do not grow complacent after tasting meager success.

4. Short Handed Goals

If you can score being down a man, take it and run. There’s not much point in worrying how the Dallas Stars line up in this metric because it’s so unpredictable at times. It is a great morale boost, though,for the scoring team and a definite bummer for the other. This comes with solid structure on the penalty kill.

The upside to these stats is that they are improving from two years ago for the Stars. Let’s hope that this trend continues for a strong rebound this season for the team overall.