Sometimes, a long break serves as a chance for a hockey team to relax and recharge. But on certain occasions, it can also serve as motivation and bring a sense of urgency. And depending on how Wednesday night goes around the NHL, that urgency might catch up to the Dallas Stars.
A long break is something that the Dallas Stars needed.
Every year in the NHL, each of the 31 teams has a five-day break implemented into their schedule. It usually takes place in January or February and sometimes overlaps between the two. It’s an important part of the schedule because it gives teams a chance to relax and recharge after the first 3-4 months of the regular season. Teams are typically somewhere between 40-50 games in and simply need a rest after a taxing first half of the year.
This season, however, things look a little different. Upon the release of the 2018-19 team schedules in June, it was noted that team breaks would overlap with the NHL All-Star Break and, as a result, would be longer. This added an extra four days to the period of inactivity, bringing the total to nine or ten days, depending on the team.
The Stars were lucky enough to pull a 10-day rest, and it couldn’t have come at a more opportune time.
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Dallas wrapped up their pre-break schedule on Saturday night with a win against the Winnipeg Jets. The victory gave the Stars an important two points and helped them solidify their spot in the Western Conference playoff race for the time being.
More importantly, the win allowed the Stars to enter the break on a high note after losing their previous four contests and slipping close to the playoff wall as a result. Dallas had played nine games in 18 days to start 2019 and looked tired and sloppy in the games leading up to their matchup with the Jets.
So, a break is good. It provides time to relax, recharge, and prepare for a tough home stretch in the final 33 games.
“I think everyone is feeling pretty good,” Tyler Pitlick said on Jan. 12, “but we have to get that rest and be healthy and ready to go because once that break is over, it’s crunch time. So, we have to be ready to go.”
But, a break can also create a sense of urgency and potential worry. That typically comes into play when another team that has yet to start their own break hits a hot streak or leapfrogs the resting team in the standings. Meanwhile, all that the team on break can do is watch it happen and wait for the clock to tick faster so they can get back to action.
On Wednesday night, the Dallas Stars might run into that urgency. That’s because there are six NHL games scheduled that will carry the league into the All-Star Break, which begins on Thursday. Of those six contests, four could affect the Stars’ playoff standing. Let’s take a look at them:
Arizona Coyotes @ Montreal Canadiens, 6:30 p.m.
Minnesota Wild @ Colorado Avalanche, 8:30 p.m.
St. Louis Blues @ Anaheim Ducks, 9 p.m.
Carolina Hurricanes @ Vancouver Canucks, 9:30 p.m.
Now, let’s take a quick look at the wild card standings in the Western Conference.
1. Dallas Stars 49 GP 52 PTS
2. Colorado Avalanche 49 GP 52 PTS
3. Vancouver Canucks 50 GP 52 PTS
4. Anaheim Ducks 50 GP 51 PTS
5. Arizona Coyotes 49 GP 50 PTS
Starting to see the correlation? Most of the teams within two points of the Stars in the standings are in action tonight, including the Minnesota Wild, who sit in third place in the Central division with a one-point lead on Dallas.
So, how does that affect the Dallas Stars? Well, you can probably work out a handful of scenarios in your own head. Simply put, Thursday morning could see the Stars in the first wild card spot, second wild card spot, or outside of the playoff picture entirely. And with four days of no NHL action to look forward to following tonight, where the Stars sit could play a big role in their mindset coming out of the All-Star break. Let’s take a quick look at the scenarios.
Stars remain in the first wild card spot if…
- The Wild defeat the Avalanche in regulation (though Minnesota would then have a three-point lead on the Stars for third place in the division)
- The Ducks lose to the Blues in any fashion (which would bring St. Louis within three points of Dallas in the Central standings)
- The Canucks lose to the Hurricanes in regulation
Stars drop to the second wild card spot if…
- The Avalanche defeat the Wild in regulation or lose to the Wild in overtime/shootout OR
- The Canucks defeat the Hurricanes or lose to the Hurricanes in overtime/shootout OR
- The Ducks defeat the Blues
Stars drop out of the playoff picture entirely if…
- The Avalanche and Canucks defeat their opponents or lose in overtime/shootout OR
- The Ducks win and either the Avalanche or Canucks defeat their opponent or lose in overtime/shootout
Best-case scenario? The Stars remain in the first wild card spot on Thursday morning and are three points out of third place in the Central division with one game in hand as well as games in hand against all of the teams directly below them in the standings.
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Worst-case scenario? The Stars are two places outside of the final wild card spot on Thursday morning, with Minnesota/Colorado owning 53 or 54 points, the Canucks owning 54 points, and the Ducks boasting 53, as well as the Arizona Coyotes sitting tied with the Stars with 52 points.
Now, this may not seem like an important time of year to be doing this kind of breakdown. After all, there are still over 30 games to be played by each team in the regular season and a lot can happen.
But, the standings are a constant attention-getter. Jim Montgomery and his staff look at them on a regular basis, as do many Dallas Stars players. It’s a natural habit, especially when your team is stuck in a tight race with a lot of other teams for a limited number of spots.
“I think we look at the standings fairly often,” Montgomery said. “It’s nicer to look at after a win than it is after a loss; that’s just the way it is. But, I’m always more concerned with how our team is playing and how we’re growing. The frustrating part sometimes is you don’t see enough growth and then you do see growth and you get excited about how good we could be. Trying to get to that level where we start to see what we are on a daily basis is when we’re not going to have to worry about looking at the standings. We’re just going to know where we should be and we’ll be there.”
“Right now, we’re in a playoff spot, but we want to keep climbing or stay in where we are,” Jason Dickinson added on the same day.
This is an important night to watch for the Dallas Stars. If they come out of the break while still in a playoff position, it gives them added motivation to keep a firm grip on their title. But if they exit the break outside of the picture, the catch-up game commences. That’s never a game that any team wants to play, but it’s part of the race sometimes.
Make sure to keep an eye on tonight’s action. It just might find a way to add some motivation or gravity to your inner hockey fan’s life.
It’s beginning to become that time of the year.