The final day of the 2019 NHL Trade Deadline came and went without the Dallas Stars making one last move. With that being said, they have recommitted to their lineup to survive a tough final push to the Stanley Cup Playoffs. That will require the entire organization to rise to the occasion.
With the 2019 Trade Deadline officially in the past, there’s nothing left standing between the Dallas Stars and the 2019 Stanley Cup Playoffs besides 20 games. Take that in for a moment.
The last week has been a bit of a whirlwind for the franchise. Last Tuesday, the Stars opened up a three-game homestand at the American Airlines Center against the Nashville Predators. They fell short of picking up two valuable points, but put up an admirable fight in a 5-3 defeat. The loss was an encouraging one, especially considering that the struggling Dallas offense scored three goals after being shut out in their previous two contests. Still, enduring a three-game losing skid in late February is dangerous territory to navigate.
Fortunately, the Stars broke out of it in a big way two nights later. After welcoming in a St. Louis Blues team that had won 11 straight games, Dallas snapped their skid in half with a dominant 5-2 victory in front of an reinvigorated home crowd. They broke their own losing slump, hopped back into the win column, and proved that they can run with the best in the NHL when everything clicks.
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But all of that hope once again evaporated on Saturday afternoon as the Dallas Stars dropped a 3-0 clunker to the Carolina Hurricanes to close out their homestand on a discouraging note.
Weaved into their Saturday action was a handful of noteworthy trades. With the deadline just 48 hours away, GM Jim Nill got an early jump on the frenzy, acquiring defenseman Ben Lovejoy on Saturday morning and following it up with the acquisition of Mats Zuccarello shortly after the game against Carolina concluded.
Sunday afternoon brought an incredibly bittersweet feel with it. Though the Stars dug their heels in against a dangerous Chicago Blackhawks team on the road and pulled out a gritty 4-3 win to wrap up the back-to-back, they lost the newly-acquired Zuccarello to a broken arm. After serving as a visible and passionate spark to the Dallas offense through the first two periods, Zuccarello will now miss the next four weeks as he recovers from surgery.
As Monday dawned and the 2019 Trade Deadline strode closer and closer, Nill spent his day in the office, looking at potential trades to replace Zuccarello’s spark. He didn’t end up finding a deal, leaving the team to stand pat as the 2 p.m. deadline hit.
And with that, here they sit. 20 games to go, wins in two of their past three games, three more games to go in a daunting Western Conference road trip, a gut-punching injury to a valuable new asset, and a sizable cloud of uncertainty lingering.
But, as a wise person once said, to dwell on the past simply causes failure in the present.
The injury to Zuccarello is unfortunate. He showed the Dallas Stars offense just how good they can be in his 13:35 of ice time on Sunday. Losing him in the most critical stretch of the season hurts, but it doesn’t have to be a determining factor. After all, the Stars have played 61 and one-third of their 62 games this season without him. And throughout those games, they managed to work their way into a playoff spot.
And on Monday afternoon, Jim Nill reaffirmed his faith in that fact by not making another move. Although he looked at different options, he didn’t see a feasible one and once again recycled the “we’re comfortable with where we’re at” phrase. Though it may still haunt the memories of Stars fans after last year’s implosion, there’s no definite decision as to where this year’s Stars team will go.
Gone Puck Wild
That all depends on how prepared the team is. The Dallas Stars enter post-deadline play with a record of 31-26-5 with 67 points. That’s good enough for the first wild card spot in the Western Conference. And though the race is getting tighter with recent resurgences by the Colorado Avalanche and Minnesota Wild, the Stars have the upper hand for now.
Now, the same lineup (and Ben Lovejoy) that has shown spurts of promise throughout the 2018-19 season while also falling victim to inconsistency will forge ahead. It’s a lineup that lacks consistent offensive pressure and scoring punch, is rock solid on defense, in net, and on the penalty kill, and cannot seem to decide what it wants to be on the power play.
So, how does a lineup like that punch their ticket to the postseason in a crowded Western Conference race? Well, doing what they have been doing is a good start. If the Stars can remain stingy in the defensive zone, limit opposing chances, and get more next-level play from Ben Bishop and Anton Khudobin, they will be in a good spot.
But that might not be enough. And while everyone is happy to have luck in their corner, it cannot always be counted on. As a result, the entire Dallas Stars organization will have to rise to the occasion.
That starts with the team’s weakest point: the offense. Players like Jamie Benn, Tyler Seguin, and Alexander Radulov will have to continue leading the charge on offense. Younger skaters like Roope Hintz, Denis Gurianov, Mattias Janmark, and Radek Faksa will have to step up their game. Veterans like Blake Comeau, Jason Spezza, and Andrew Cogliano will have to use their experience to their advantage and contribute in any and every way possible.
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On defense, John Klingberg and Esa Lindell will have to stay on top of every aspect of their game. Miro Heiskanen will have to continue dazzling, even at the most challenging time of the year. Roman Polak and Ben Lovejoy must use their leadership to help the young blue line continue its successful stretch.
Behind the bench, Jim Montgomery will have to be ready to take risks. That might include some tough decisions and some adjusted philosophies and game plans. Todd Nelson will have to find a way to get the power play cranking at a consistent rate. Rick Bowness will have to make sure his defense and penalty kill stay on top of their game.
This is a full-team effort from here on out. The final 20 games of the season tell the most about every franchise and are the ones that teams are remembered by. The five-game losing streak in December is in the rearview mirror by now. But a five-game losing streak in March? That’s a defining factor in any team’s legacy from year-to-year.
So, what will the 2018-19 Dallas Stars’ legacy be? We’ll find out over the next six weeks.
Jim Nill swung for the fences during the 2019 trade season, got an unlucky return in certain parts of the swing, and stuck to his guns when presented with one last opportunity to improve. How will his team respond?
The adversity is there, but so is the potential. The Dallas Stars got this far in their regular season campaign without any major reinforcements. All they have to do is continue plowing forward and give Zuccarello something other than pride to play for once he gets back in the lineup.
The post-deadline journey begins tonight in Vegas against a revamped Golden Knights team. 20 games to keep their spark alive, continue making a name for themselves, and maybe finding a lucky streak or two along the way that can solidify their goal.
Buckle up.