Dallas Stars: Final Thoughts On A Deflating 5-2 Loss To Chicago
By Josh Clark
After knocking off a red-hot Calgary Flames team on Tuesday night, the Dallas Stars couldn’t find a way to finish their short homestand off with a win. They fell to the Chicago Blackhawks 5-2 and picked up their fifth loss in the last six games.
By the early part of the second period, the game looked out of reach and, to a certain extent, inexplicable. The Dallas Stars were well behind on the scoreboard and, though they tried at certain points, could not close the gap.
The Stars dropped a 5-2 decision to the Chicago Blackhawks, picking up their fifth loss in the last six games. They closed out a short two-game homestand and will now head into a weekend back-to-back situation before rolling into the NHL holiday break.
Game recap
The game got out to a quick start for Chicago as Alex DeBrincat scored off of a face-off to take a 1-0 lead for the Blackhawks just 1:12 into the period. The Stars received their first power play opportunity of the game a few moments later, but couldn’t convert. Chicago closed out the period with an Erik Gustafsson power play goal to take a 2-0 lead. Dallas held a narrow 14-12 shot advantage.
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The second period didn’t start on a much better note as Patrick Kane scored on a backhand just 1:56 into the frame. The goal put Chicago ahead 3-0 and gave them a sturdy lead. But the Stars answered back a few minutes later when Tyler Seguin scored in the slot to make it 3-1. Jamie Benn and Denius Gurianov earned the assists on the goal. But that’s where the scoring would stop, and the two teams entered intermission with a two-goal spread.
The Dallas Stars started the third period off with a goal from Taylor Fedun off of a rebound chance. The tally came with 13:44 left in the frame and brought Dallas within one shot. But, though they put together some good rushes and had their chances, the comeback came up short. Following empty net goals from Kane and Brendan Perlini, the game ended in a 5-2 loss for the Stars.
Thoughts and Observations
A terrible, horrible, no good, very bad start
The first period was more of a throwaway period than anything for the Dallas Stars. Almost nothing went right for the team besides the fact that John Klingberg skated for 7:21. The first problem was the early goal against. Following that, the Stars picked up a power play but couldn’t get a goal back. And after a few more minutes of bouncing back and forth, Chicago scored on their first power play of the game.
“We didn’t have the right attitude,” said head coach Jim Montgomery. “We had the right attitude against Calgary, we played a hard game, and played the game the right way. We played pond hockey tonight, especially in the first 30 minutes. It cost us. We were down 3-0 for a reason.”
It was a rough first period for a Dallas Stars team that could have used a hot start. It didn’t get any better when Patrick Kane scored 1:56 into the second frame.
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“I think they played a little bit differently than teams we’ve played recently,” said Taylor Fedun. “They really stretched us out a lot. They were blowing the d-zone even before they had the puck sometimes. Especially early on, I think we struggled with that a little bit. And then towards the end of the game when we’re trying to create a little bit more, they are very opportunistic offensively on that team. You’ve got to give them credit.”
Moral of the story: slow starts hurt.
Bad Chicago special teams looked good
In a game that only saw a total of two penalties called (one on each team), the Chicago Blackhawks won the special teams battle. That may be difficult to believe, considering the Hawks owned the worst power play (12.0 percent) and penalty kill (72.4 percent) units in the NHL coming into the game.
The Blackhawks killed off the Stars’ only power play of the game early in the first period and only gave up two shots during the kill. A few minutes later, they drew a power play of their own and didn’t allow the Dallas PK to clear the puck once before scoring after 1:06 of zone time.
Part of that had to do with the officials being lenient on the whistle, but the bottom line is that Chicago capitalized on both units when needed.
“It’s tough for me to say right now because we only had one,” Klingberg said about power play opportunities. “I had a pretty decent shot there that I thought was going to go in and then I think when the second unit came in, they had a couple of chances, too. It’s tough to say because we only had one power play.”
Top line kept on clicking
The Dallas Stars top line is known for being one of the best in the NHL, and they did their best at keeping their reputation up on Thursday night. Benn, Seguin and Radulov skated together for a majority of the game on the top unit, though there was a portion of the second period where Gurianov stepped in for Radulov.
“Yeah, of course,” Gurianov said about playing with the top line. “Just trying to do my best. Playing with Jamie Benn doesn’t hurt. Just trying to understand how they play and find the puck and realize when I should shoot. Just trying to do my best.”
Regardless of who was on the top line, the trio kept the Dallas offense going. They generated plenty of quality chances and were on the ice for both of the Stars goals. They bore down in the third period but ultimately came up short of a game-tying goal. Still, it was good to see the top line driving the offense.
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The captain was all over the place (in a good way)
Whether it was setting Tyler Seguin up in the slot for the game’s first goal or taking a crosscheck to the face while driving the net on Fedun’s goal, Jamie Benn was all over the ice tonight. He played all throughout the offensive zone, battling for the puck and creating scoring chances for the team using his size and possession.
He ended the night with 19:03 of ice time (the second most of Dallas forwards), two assists, five total shots (though only one was on net), two hits, and a 50 percent win percentage in the face-off dot. Not a bad night for no. 14.
That Denis Gurianov guy is looking good
If there is a bright spot from Thursday night’s game, it centers around the promising and continuously developing play of Denis Gurianov.
Gurianov was one of the Stars’ most active players throughout the game, constantly getting the puck on his stick. He was winning races for the puck with his speed and kept the offensive gears turning whenever the chances halted. He created some good scoring opportunities, including a cross-ice pass to Jamie Benn on an offensive rush that Benn ended up ringing off of the post.
“Yeah, every game has been more comfortable,” Gurianov said about adapting to the NHL pace. “Just trying to do my best and trying to work hard and do what coach told us.”
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Gurianov was promoted to the first line for a brief part of the second period and skated alongside Benn and Seguin. He rewarded the move with a secondary assist on Seguin’s goal. The assist gave Gurianov his third point (1-2-3) in just his fifth game of the season. All in all, he skated 15:58, including 1:06 of power play time.
“He’s making things happen, which is exciting,” Montgomery said about no. 34’s play. “Every time he’s out there, he’s winning footraces and he’s winning one-on-one battles. A couple of rush plays he made, he was one of our most creative players to play in the third early to Jamie Benn was a high-end play.”
Bishop kept the Stars in the game at important points
Though Ben Bishop finished the night with an .889 save percentage and gave up three goals, it was because of him that the Stars had a chance at all. Though he allowed a few goals that he’s going to want back, the goaltender made a few big stops on some early breakaways for the Blackhawks that kept Dallas within striking distance.
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In the third period, he shut the door, going 9/9 and keeping the Stars within a shot before being pulled with just over two minutes to go in the game.
Klingberg’s first game back
Thursday night’s contest marked John Klingberg’s first time back in the lineup in 41 days. And, for the most part, he played up to par.
“I felt okay,” Klingberg said. “I think my timing was a little off but my puck handling felt pretty good. Sometimes, I was kind of maybe just a little too cute and I think that’s something that the whole team struggled with today. We should’ve played a little bit more straight lines and we could’ve gained some more zone time, but we turned it over too much and that starts with me as well. I felt okay.”
Klingberg made a few good passes and generated some good opportunities in the offensive zone, but looked a little slow on the defensive side and in the transition game.
“Really good in the offensive zone, a little rusty on rush defense,” Montgomery said of Klingberg’s performance. “As the game wore on, I thought instead of transition, he tried to make perfect plays which stalled our transition. But, it was good to have him back. We were more dynamic offensively with him back in the lineup.”
All in all, he played 24:30 (the most of any Dallas skater) and finished with two shots and a -3 on-ice rating.
Even the best of players need a game or two to get back into the swing of things, and that’s what Klingberg had tonight. He looked alright and should get closer to his usual speed as the 2018 year closes out.
Central division continues to plague the Stars
The Dallas Stars dropped their fifth straight Central division contest of the year. As a result, they are now 1-4-1 in Central play and have fallen into a quick hole even though their schedule has been light in terms of divisional play so far.
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This isn’t necessarily because of one thing or another, but is something that the Stars need to correct quickly. Losing points, especially to teams in the basement of the division and league as a whole, cannot happen if they want to be a playoff team come April.
Bearing down on a tough weekend slate before the break
It doesn’t get any easier.
After a brief practice tomorrow afternoon, the Stars will head north to St. Paul, Minn. for a Saturday night matchup with the Wild. It’s another Central division contest and will serve as the first part of a back-to-back. Following the game in Minnesota, the Stars will come back home to face the New York Islanders on Sunday night before getting three days off for the NHL holiday break.
“We have to,” Klingberg said about recovering in preparation for the weekend. “I think [Seguin], [Benn], [Radulov] played a good game today. They had two goals. But, I think a lot of the time they turned it over as well, and that starts with your best players. We have to move on to the next game and keep working on that.”
It’s a rough slate to close out on, but the Stars will have to find a way to make do. The season isn’t getting any longer, and it’s now the time of year where teams start to determine their playoff worthiness. Dallas is now 17-15-3 on the season and sits two points out of the final wild card spot in the Western Conference.
“There’s no excuse,” said Montgomery. “It’s a tough league. We got to go to Minnesota and we got to be a lot better than we were tonight.”
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Saturday night presents the Stars yet another chance at keeping themselves in the hunt and picking up important points along the way. We’ll see what they bring to the table in St. Paul.