Dallas Stars Drop Deflating Loss To Blues, Start Unexpected Losing Skid
Although they welcomed a struggling team to their home ice, the Dallas Stars fell flat on Saturday night. They lost 3-1 to the St. Louis Blues and started up an unexpected losing streak. It’s an unacceptable skid that continues to further push the Stars into questioning.
Head coach Jim Montgomery perfectly summed up the Dallas Stars‘ 2018-19 season so far in a single quote on Saturday night.
“Unfortunately, I’m very frustrated that I have not been able to gain consistency in our performance and I have not been able change the culture of mediocrity,” Monty told Sean Shapiro of The Athletic.
The quote came in a postgame interview following the Stars’ deflating 3-1 loss to the St. Louis Blues at the American Airlines Center. The defeat dropped Dallas to 23-19-4 on the season, handed them a second straight loss, and started their season-long homestand with a difficult loss against a divisional opponent stuck in the cellar of the conference standings.
And that’s where we begin our discussion on this Sunday morning.
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After rolling out a 5-1-1 streak immediately following the NHL Holiday Break, the Dallas Stars have dropped their last two contests. The skid started on Thursday with a 2-1 loss to the Flyers in Philadelphia that wrapped up an average road trip. And for the Stars, it was a very telling game in many ways.
For one, it put the Stars’ continued struggles with starting strong on display. Dallas didn’t score a goal in the first period and didn’t find the back of the net until 2:51 remained in the third period.
The loss also showed the Stars’ lack of offensive dominance. Jamie Benn was the only player to score and Dallas generated very few high-danger chances, leaving the Flyers with plenty of space to take over the game. The depth scoring was once again non-existent as it has been for practically all of 2019 and the Stars once again lost a road game to wrap up a long trip on an average note.
For all of the clunkiness that the Dallas Stars showed in the loss to Philadelphia, they somehow piled onto it against St. Louis on Saturday night.
At the same time as the Dallas Cowboys continued to claw and fight back against the Los Angeles Rams in an NFC Divisional game, the Stars never really seemed to be up for a fight against the Blues. St. Louis scored 34 seconds into the first period and controlled the tempo for the remainder of the game. Dallas eventually got a goal from Erik Condra midway through the third period to make it a 2-1 game, but Vladimir Tarasenko (who is on pace for a career-low year) was quick to score his second of the night and make it a 3-1 final.
Don’t forget that the Blues are now 19-20-4 with 42 points and sit sixth in the Central division. This is a struggling opponent that Dallas beat handily using a mediocre effort on Tuesday night in St. Louis. And yet, the Blues jumped out of the gate while the Stars tripped over their own feet.
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“Two games in a row where we don’t compete at a level that is acceptable,” Monty stated following the game.
And just like that, the Stars have a two-game losing skid on their hands. Now, two games isn’t the end of the world. Dallas just didn’t get it done over the past few hours, but they are still in third place in the Central division. The other teams around them are struggling as well and Dallas has five more home games in a row coming up. So, the slump isn’t a massive problem, right?
Well, it kind of is. The thing about this losing streak is that it is quickly exposing the Dallas Stars for what they are: a mediocre team in need of a surge. Where does that surge come from? Will it ever come? That’s anyone’s guess.
But the fact that the Stars have spent the past 72 hours losing to two teams that currently sit in 24th and 31st in the league standings is unacceptable. Dallas hasn’t really had any viable excuse for their shortcomings, either; it’s simply been a matter of faltering against teams that they should be beating.
This stems from a few different things. For one, it’s about consistent effort and reaching the same pace and intensity in every single game.
Tyler Seguin mentioned after the loss to Philadelphia that the Stars might have a problem with playing to the level of their opponents. In other words, they compete hard against the top teams in the league and crumble against the lowly teams.
On Saturday morning before the game against the Blues, Jason Dickinson echoed Seguin’s remarks to me.
“Some of the guys said it and Seggy said it, I think, where sometimes we might play down to other team’s levels,” Dickinson said. “And, you know what? That’s a real thing. It’s sh**ty. We shouldn’t ever do that because we are a good team and we could take over. Unfortunately, that’s been a mentality sometimes, I guess. But, as long as we can find the intensity and keep pushing, these games are huge.”
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He’s right; these games are huge. It’s huge and sometimes even monumental to win against the best teams in the league (like Tampa Bay, who will visit the Stars on Tuesday). But winning against teams like Philadelphia and St. Louis is expected. Those are the points that should be almost guaranteed for any team competing for a spot in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
But, for the last two games, the Stars have fallen flat. The offense is even more nonexistent than usual, the team is starting slow and finishing behind, and the lack of motivation and energy is becoming prevalent. And the worst part of it all? There doesn’t seem to be a fix as of right now. The Stars have had these problems at different points so far in the season but have yet to sort them out. And, as they now sit with 46 games under their belt, the need for an answer is becoming all the more pressing.
The Dallas Stars are on their first losing skid since Dec. 15, 2018. The difference between the two is that in their last skid, they lost games on the road to teams sitting in playoff spots (Colorado, San Jose, and Vegas). This time around, they are dropping winnable games instead of gaining important ground.
And now, the stage is set for an intriguing ride into a ten-day break. The Dallas Stars will welcome the Tampa Bay Lightning (who own the best record in the NHL), Los Angeles Kings (who sit last in the Western Conference), and Winnipeg Jets (who lead the Central division) to the AAC over the next six days. It’s a chance to bring a consistent effort, revamp their energy level, and try to grind out some hard-earned points.
As of right now, though, this is as big of a problem as any for the Stars. Their inconsistent effort and complacency with playing a flat style of hockey against each opponent, whether strong or weak, is beginning to catch up with them. They are a team missing purpose and dedication in their game, and those kinds of teams never end up succeeding in the long run. There is still time to change things up, but now is the time to get the ball rolling on that.
This losing skid serves as a reminder that the Dallas Stars are by no means a shoo-in for the playoffs this year. There is a lot of season left to be played, and only teams with consistency and both physical and mental strength will make the cut.
The Stars are still working on bringing all of that together. As a result, we’re talking about a losing skid this morning and a Dallas Stars team that couldn’t get it right in another lackluster and lifeless performance against a struggling team.
Next. Halfway There: What We Know About The Stars So Far. dark
This slump tells a lot about the Stars. But the week ahead could tell even more with visits from opponents plotted all across the standings.
And through 46 games, it’s about time that we find out more about this team.