Dallas Stars: Final Thoughts On A Stale 3-1 Loss To New York Islanders
By Josh Clark
After putting together a heroic 2-1 overtime victory against the Minnesota Wild on Saturday night, the Dallas Stars were back home for a Sunday night matchup. This one wasn’t as fruitful, though, as the Stars fell 3-1 to the New York Islanders.
Whenever there is a break in the schedule, teams always want to enter it on as strong of a note as possible. Unfortunately, the Dallas Stars weren’t able to achieve that goal on Sunday night.
Though they started their weekend back-to-back with a gritty 2-1 overtime victory against the Minnesota Wild, the Stars returned home and hopelessly dropped a 3-1 decision to the New York Islanders. Instead of heading into the break on a winning note, they will now enter on a lackluster performance that only spurns further questions about where this team is headed.
Game recap
The first period offered nothing more than a handful of chances and a few power play opportunities. By the end of the frame, the Dallas Stars and New York Islanders were knotted at 0-0 with the shots sitting at 9-7 in favor of the Islanders.
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The middle frame offered plenty more excitement and energy as both teams found the back of the net. The Stars started things off when Tyler Pitlick danced the goal line and netted a goal to take the 1-0 lead for Dallas with 13:40 remaining. Casey Cizikas answered a few minutes later with a goal that took an awkward hop off the top of the Dallas net to tie the game at 1-1. Alexander Radulov and Leo Komarov were also called for two different roughing penalties each during the second period after getting tied up a few times. Other than that, the game entered second intermission in a 1-1 tie.
The third period was all New York. After holding the Stars to no shots through the first nine minutes, Anders Lee scored on the power play to claim the 2-1 lead for NYI. And though Dallas somewhat attempted to mount a comeback, it fell short. Following a Komarov empty net goal, the game finished up as a 3-1 win for New York.
Thoughts and Observations
Weathering the storm early…
For all of the flack that the Dallas Stars have received for starting slow in games this year, their start on Sunday night was a somewhat respectable one considering the circumstances.
In the recent past, the Stars have struggled in the opening period of the second game of a back-to-back. For example, they only took three shots in the first period of their last back-to-back game (vs. San Jose) and severely lacked both energy and composure.
Against New York, Dallas killed two penalties without giving up a shot, drew a power play of their own, and finished with seven shots on net to the Islanders’ nine. For a team that traveled last night going up against a team that has been off since Thursday night, the Stars did a good job at keeping pace with their opponent in the first.
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…but hitting the wall shortly after
Playing in the second night of a back-to-back catches up with teams sooner or later, and it was no different for the Dallas Stars. According to head coach Jim Montgomery, the team lost its step after the first seven minutes.
“Maybe after the first seven minutes, I thought we ran out of gas,” said Montgomery. “I thought we skated the first seven minutes, and then, you know, we were real bad.”
“I just thought that I was happy that we were skating,” he added. “I didn’t like the first seven minutes. There’s no one, I don’t, did we make two tape-to-tape passes consecutively all night?”
The Stars began to look tired and fatigued following Pitlick’s goal to open the scoring. Dallas was heavily outshot in the middle part of the second period and the Islanders capitalized to tie the game. From then on out, it seemed to be New York’s game to lose.
Dallas finished the night with just 20 shots, which is their fourth-lowest total in a game this season. They looked dysfunctional, showed little to no chemistry, and simply couldn’t get anything going. Simply put, they hit the back-to-back wall.
“I just thought that I was happy that we were skating,” Montgomery added. “I didn’t like the first seven minutes. There’s no one, I don’t, did we make two tape-to-tape passes consecutively all night?”
One bad bounce to open up the scoring for the Isles
The first goal scored by the Islanders was an interesting one, for sure. After soaring high into the air, the puck came down near the crease and snuck behind a scrambling Khudobin.
It ended up bouncing off of Khudobin followed by the crossbar before landing on the goaltender’s back and deflecting in.
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“It hit my head, I bent over, and it hit the back bar of the net,” said goaltender Anton Khudobin. “Then, it started rolling back and hit my back and I reached around with my hand but, you know.”
That’s not to say that the goal ended up being the deciding factor in the Stars’ loss (their effort and energy was what did them in), but it was an interesting one nonetheless.
Pitlick slots back in and makes immediate impact
If there was any sort of bright spot in the Dallas Stars’ play, it was the effort put forth by Tyler Pitlick. No. 18 scored the first and lone goal for the Stars and provided some sort of offensive push for the team.
“I was looking to pass, but they kind of just let me walk in,” said Tyler Pitlick on scoring the lone Dallas goal. “I just tried to put it five-hole.”
After being designated as the healthy scratch against the Wild on Saturday, Pitlick entered a tired lineup with plenty of energy and a desire to prove that he belonged.
“I wasn’t very happy, obviously,” Pitlick said. “So, I came in and showed that I wasn’t happy.”
“I thought he skated for us,” said Montgomery of Pitlick’s play. “Not playing last night, he brought the jump that we would like to have.”
When asked about if the coaching staff had explained why he was scratched versus the Wild and if they had provided any feedback, Pitlick said that he had not heard anything from the coaches.
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“No, nothing,” Pitlick said. “I didn’t hear anything.”
That’s an odd thing to hear, especially when many players (including Jason Dickinson) have raved about Montgomery’s dedication to being up-front with his players. But, regardless of the story, Pitlick provided a surge that no one else in the Dallas lineup did on Sunday.
Hanzal’s immediate future up in the air again
Martin Hanzal exited Sunday night’s game after the first period with what came to be classified as an upper-body injury. He did not return to the contest.
In the postgame press conference, Jim Montgomery mentioned that Hanzal would visit the doctor tomorrow to see if the issue is related to his back. Tonight was just Hanzal’s seventh game of the season after he spent the first two months of the year recovering from spinal fusion surgery.
This marks the second straight time that the Stars lost a center midway through a game after losing Jason Dickinson to back spasms against the Wild. Tyler Pitlick pointed out how that can play a factor in changing the overall game plan.
“Yeah, it’s tough,” said Pitlick about losing centers to injury on back-to-back nights. “It’s tough when guys have to double-shift, especially coming off of a back-to-back. But, we have to find a way to dig in and get those points.”
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We’ll hear more about Hanzal in the days to come including a potential timetable for recovery.
In desperate need of a break
Although they ended up tumbling into it instead of surging, the Dallas Stars are now at the NHL holiday break. It couldn’t have come at a better time.
“We have to take this break as a good recovery,” said Khudobin. “The rest of the season, there won’t be easy games. Every game will be like a playoff game.”
After months of dealing with injuries to critical players, lengthy road schedules, and ebbs and flows with a new coach and culture, the Dallas Stars finally get three days to breathe, sit back, and contemplate what all has gone down as well as what is to come.
“I think we need to regroup, go spend some time with our families, come back and hit the ground running,” said Pitlick.
“Go enjoy your time with your family,” Montgomery said. “They need to take time away to be with their families; that’s the most important part. That was the message: spend time, get reenergized; obviously, the guys are going to be, everyone thinks about their last game. Get away, spend some time with your family and loved ones because it’s a special time of the year. Come back, and we’ll get to work on the morning of the 27th.”
The Stars are off for the next three days and will be back in action on the morning of Thursday, Dec. 27 for a morning skate before flying to Nashville to duke it out with the Predators on Thursday night. It’s a chance to recharge and reset before hopping back into the fire. Here’s to hoping they use it correctly.
Setting the mindset for an uphill battle
After tonight’s loss, the Dallas Stars once again removed themselves from the Western Conference playoff picture. As a result, they sit tied with the Edmonton Oilers for the final wild card spot in the West, though they have a game out of hand. The season is far from over and the playoff race is just heating up, but it’s not a great spot to be when heading into Christmas.
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“We just gotta keep working,” said Montgomery. “We gotta keep working together. We have to get tougher, and that’s mentally I’m talking about, not so much the physicality on the ice. But, I think they go hand-in-hand.”
This all boils down to having the proper mindset, and the Dallas Stars need that right now. They are out-of-sync, inconsistent, and are giving up valuable points as a result. That will need to be fixed as soon as possible in order for this team to get their playoff hopes back on track.
“To me, it’s a mindset of pushing the envelope and wanting to make plays and wanting to be a difference-maker,” Montgomery said. “Guys were tired tonight, but a lot of other teams that have seen similar schedules find ways to win hockey games.”
“I don’t think we’re satisfied at all,” Pitlick said about the team mindset. “I think there’s a lot of room for improvement and we’ve got to get better. We’ve got to be consistent every night. We gotta bring our A-game. We can’t give away points and not be ready to go.”
Looking past Christmas to what awaits
The Dallas Stars are now 18-16-3 on the season with 39 points in 37 games. They sit just two points above the .500 mark with 45 games to go in the year. They are 2-6-0 in their last eight games and have dropped two in a row on home ice.
The Stars have faced their fair share of adversity this season, but they must start finding ways to overcome it if they want to be included in the postseason mix come April.
After resting Dec. 24-26, the Stars will be back in action against the Predators on Thursday night. It’s an important Central division matchup that will then give way to a four-game homestand against Eastern Conference opponents (Detroit, Montreal, New Jersey, and Washington).
This break is a chance to regroup, rest, and reset. The season is far from over, but the Dallas Stars must figure out what kind of team they are and they will have to figure it out soon.
Next. What Goes Into Stars Enduring, Breaking A Losing Skid?. dark
We’ll have to wait and see what Stars team greets us on the other side of Christmas.