OT Stars Hockey

[terpsfball09]

I have yet to see any analyst proclaim them a Stanley Cup threat. Most are saying that they are an up-and-coming team in the West, that their offense is loaded, and they will go as far as their young and inexperienced defense can take them. Some are predicting slight regression even. I disagree. I see them as about a 6-seed in the West behind Chicago, Anaheim, St Louis, Los Angeles, and maybe San Jose.

How has San Howsay gotten better though? sure, our defense is very...limited. But they played fine post olympics last season. If they continue, I don't see us finishing behind the Sharks, or even the blues for that matter. It appears to me that we have removed our worst player and added some pretty good forward depth. Spezza, Hemsky (only heard positive things about the skills/talents he possesses, even though I don't know him that well), a decent backup goalie, and a guy on D like Oleksiak who should be much better than last year. Our D is the same... the only difference is that we know where the top 2 lines belong, and the third line is going to be gonchar and a, hopefully, more talented young guy where they wont see nearly as much time anyway.

We lost whitney, which makes us better by default. We lost chiasser (even though i always believed he was just average, maybe slightly above, and only played his best when he was with whitney anyway). Not only did we lose some expendable players, we're gonna have our entire core progress, more than likely. Val's gonna be good, Oleksiak's gonna be better, and our powerplay is gonna be MUCH better. We have new guys like Spezza and Hemsky who are superb controllers of the puck, and limit turnovers. We'll actually be able to form some sort of a structure on PP's now, instead of just rushing it in and trying to catch them off guard.

St. Louis lost some pretty big names like ryan miller and Sobotka, and their only key addition was Statsny. I, personally, believe we are at or maybe even slightly above St.Louis' level. They have a fantastic defense and a talented first line, but a pretty bad goalie and their struggles with depth showed themselves against chicago in the playoffs.

 

[WilltheThrill]

How has San Howsay gotten better though? sure, our defense is very...limited. But they played fine post olympics last season. If they continue, I don't see us finishing behind the Sharks, or even the blues for that matter. It appears to me that we have removed our worst player and added some pretty good forward depth. Spezza, Hemsky (only heard positive things about the skills/talents he possesses, even though I don't know him that well), a decent backup goalie, and a guy on D like Oleksiak who should be much better than last year. Our D is the same... the only difference is that we know where the top 2 lines belong, and the third line is going to be gonchar and a, hopefully, more talented young guy where they wont see nearly as much time anyway.

We lost whitney, which makes us better by default. We lost chiasser (even though i always believed he was just average, maybe slightly above, and only played his best when he was with whitney anyway). Not only did we lose some expendable players, we're gonna have our entire core progress, more than likely. Val's gonna be good, Oleksiak's gonna be better, and our powerplay is gonna be MUCH better. We have new guys like Spezza and Hemsky who are superb controllers of the puck, and limit turnovers. We'll actually be able to form some sort of a structure on PP's now, instead of just rushing it in and trying to catch them off guard.

St. Louis lost some pretty big names like ryan miller and Sobotka, and their only key addition was Statsny. I, personally, believe we are at or maybe even slightly above St.Louis' level. They have a fantastic defense and a talented first line, but a pretty bad goalie and their struggles with depth showed themselves against chicago in the playoffs.

A lot of that is untrue. You forget how good San Jose actually was last season. They were the 4 seed for a reason. They dominated the Kings in games 1-3 and then fell flat as LA gained all the momentum. Playoff chokers? For sure. But San Jose didn't have to get better, they were already good. They didn't lose anyone significant and they've got a healthy Hertl returning. Plus I said "maybe" San Jose would finish ahead of Dallas. The two teams are close.

As for St. Louis- NO. Big fat NO. Dallas is not better than them. You won't find one single analyst or player who would agree with that. Their top 3 defensemen Pietrangelo, Bouwmeester, and Shattenkirk are better than anyone Dallas has. They already had Backes, Oshie, Steen, Berglund, and Tarasenko, and now they've added Stastny. Ryan Miller is an average goalie and always has been. Look at his career numbers- nothing special. He's consistently listed as the most overrated goalie in hockey and for good reason. They have goalies who are just as talented or better in Allen and Elliot. And Sobotka? Really? He's decent at best. losing his 33 points isn't going to hurt. St. Louis is deep and talented. Maybe in 2 years the Stars will overtake them.

And you are way overselling Oleksiak. He's not even going to start the season in the NHL. Goligoski, Dillon, Daley, and Nemeth are definites. That leaves 2 starting spots and 1 bench. Jordie Benn is very likely to earn a spot. Gonchar at worst will be the 7th man/healthy scratch. Both John Klingberg and Jyrki Jokipakka are thought of as more NHL-ready than Oleksiak right now. Plus Connauton is there too. There were very high hopes for Oleksiak at first, but he's now seen more as an eventual 2nd or 3rd pair guy. In other words, he's solid but he's not going to be a major difference-maker that vaults the Stars into sudden Cup contention. The Stars have a ton of young talented firepower on offense, but their defense is still a work in progress. They still allow far too many shots on goal and they lack any kind of puck handlers. Give it another year or two after the kids have gotten better and Nill's made a move or two.

And by the way, Ray Whitney wasn't the Stars' worst player last year, even as bad as he was. Gonchar and Rome were both much worse, both in Corsi numbers and in overall stats. Plus Whitney spent too much time on the bench to negatively affect the team as much as others did.

 

[ESPN Refugee]

Wasn't the Sharks up 3-0 and not 3-1? I agree the Sharks are good and they seem to be pretty good at developing talent. I saw an article not long ago that they have 4 or 5 prospects that are in the top 50 or 60 prospects currently going.

The knock on Oleksiak is yes he's big but he's soft. He may be 6'7 or whatever but plays like someone who is 5'11. He's still young and still has time to develop that mean SOB in him but I agree with Will that he will probably be in Austin all year unless he makes a giant leap. We have a great and upcoming team but far far from a true contender. For this team to make a surprising deep run will take Kari playing out of his mind and virtually being the William Wallace of this team. They're not ready and they still have deficiencies on that blue line. Not to mention that even though we have studs, they're still in the process of going through growing pains as well.

 

[terpsfball09]

I think you're right about st.louis (even though we flat out out-played them on multiple occasions last year) but I don't think San Jose is as good as you say. They're getting really old, and when I watched us play them last year, we were definitely the rougher, faster team. They do a great job at handling the puck, but are VERY prone to a counter attack. St.Louis has fantastic D (saw them live twice which even highlighted it more), but I don't think they are light years above us by any means.

I trust what Nill is doing with this D. I, more than anyone else, wanted a top 4 d man. But Nill never had those plans. He saw how strong the D was in Austin, and how good our D ended up being in the homestretch from last season, and he was confident in the young guys to fill any void we may need. If Nill feels that way, than I do. He has given us no reason to not believe every word he says lol. One of the best hockey minds there is

 

[WilltheThrill]

Went to the Stars Ice Breaker event today. The entire team was there except for Eakin, Dillon, Nemeth, and Hemsky. I got pictures up close with Benn, Seguin, Eaves, Garbutt, Roussel, Lehtonen, Fiddler, Connauton, and Lindback. I got to meet and talk to Nichushkin, Gonchar, Rynas, Spezza, Horcoff, Daley, and Goligoski. I got the two Russians, Nichushkin and Gonchar, to sign a puck. I also got signed pucks from Spezza and Goligoski. The line to meet Seguin and Benn was like 500 people long, so I had to settle for just a picture of them from up close. They also had the Ice Girls, Ali Lucia, and Victor E. Green (new mascot) there to interact with the fans.

It was a really cool event. Crowded, but cool.

I'll try to post a few of the pics here in a little while.

 

[Bmurph]

Went to the Stars Ice Breaker event today. The entire team was there except for Eakin, Dillon, Nemeth, and Hemsky. I got pictures up close with Benn, Seguin, Eaves, Garbutt, Roussel, Lehtonen, Fiddler, Connauton, and Lindback. I got to meet and talk to Nichushkin, Gonchar, Rynas, Spezza, Horcoff, Daley, and Goligoski. I got the two Russians, Nichushkin and Gonchar, to sign a puck. I also got signed pucks from Spezza and Goligoski. The line to meet Seguin and Benn was like 500 people long, so I had to settle for just a picture of them from up close. They also had the Ice Girls, Ali Lucia, and Victor E. Green (new mascot) there to interact with the fans.

It was a really cool event. Crowded, but cool.

I'll try to post a few of the pics here in a little while.

These events are awesome for the fans, I love the Rangers FanFest. Had I known about this event I would have gone, I am a memorabilia fanatic and generally cost is not an issue. I don't mind paying for cool shit

 

[Justinkm83]

These events are awesome for the fans, I love the Rangers FanFest. Had I known about this event I would have gone, I am a memorabilia fanatic and generally cost is not an issue. I don't mind paying for cool shit

I watched it on TV before one of the Rangers games. it looked like it would've been cool had I known about it. BTW, Victor E. Green looks to much like the Philly Fanatic.

 

[Justinkm83]

Are they not televising pre season games?

 

[ESPN Refugee]

Are they not televising pre season games?

No television. Available for streaming on their website once it starts at 7:30.

 

[Justinkm83]

No television. Available for streaming on their website once it starts at 7:30.

I would like to see our 2 first round picks from the last 2 years, Honka and Dickinson. I read Honka has been turning some heads.

 

[Justinkm83]

Good News! I like Eakin.

Cody Eakin signs two-year deal with Dallas Stars - ESPN Dallas

 

[terpsfball09]

Anybody going or have tickets to one of the first two games and want to sell them? Really looking for cheap tickets for 3 friends and I, but even Craigslist is expensive now that they're relevant again

 

[WilltheThrill]

October 9th is FINALLY here!!

I can't wait to see the new team take on Chicago.

Prediction: Stars win in a shootout on an Ales Hemsky goal.

 

[ESPN Refugee]

October 9th is FINALLY here!!

I can't wait to see the new team take on Chicago.

Prediction: Stars win in a shootout on an Ales Hemsky goal.

I've had severe hockey withdrawal since Game 5 of the Stanley Cup. So glad it's back.

 

[WilltheThrill]

October 9th is FINALLY here!!

I can't wait to see the new team take on Chicago.

Prediction: Stars win in a shootout on an Ales Hemsky goal.

Well, I had the shootout part correct. The Stars badly outplayed Chicago for about 3/4 of the game. If Kari stops even just one of those weak goals against or if the ref doesn't call that ridiculous holding the stick penalty on Benn, the Stars win that game. Kane's shootout goal was really sweet though.

This Stars team looks really, really good though.

 

[ESPN Refugee]

Dallas was skating circles around the Blackhawks for a ton of the game. This thing is pointing up and it'll be a fun season to watch.

 

[DoobeeDoobeeDoo]

Dallas was skating circles around the Blackhawks for a ton of the game. This thing is pointing up and it'll be a fun season to watch.

I agree, very impressive showing by the Stars against a very good Blackhawks team. I thought the Stars were the better team throughout regulation & overtime.

 

[terpsfball09]

What I liked about the game is that the Stars played with playoff intensity. That was a good team they played today... without an argument a contender for the cup. Many people have them as winning it all. But we came out and outplayed them. Kari fucked up that first goal... but we definitely outplayed them. We are a top 5, if not THE fastest team in the NHL. When we come out with intensity, it works incredibly to our favor as you saw in the first period. If crawford doesnt play lights out, we win that game 3 or 4 to 1.

I know, in the course of an 82 game season, we cant always come out like that. But that team right there looked goooooood. Its gonna be a fun season

 

[DoobeeDoobeeDoo]

They should practice shootout moves tho, especially Spezza.

 

[terpsfball09]

They should practice shootout moves tho, especially Spezza.

Hemsky and Spezza both have great SO moves. Hemsky is probably our best SO guy on the team. He just lost control of the puck. Happens