Dallas Stars are the Essence of Inconsistency and Mediocrity

With six games to go until the actual halfway point of the season, the Dallas Stars find themselves mired in a mostly forgettable series of fits and starts.

This was supposed to be a continuation of a nascent dynasty for the Dallas Stars. Stocked with young talent, last year’s iteration took the NHL Central Division by storm en route to 109 points and the top seed in the Western Conference. Sure, the fairy tale fizzled with a second round ouster at the hands of the St. Louis Blues, but the arrow was pointed up for this franchise.

Or so we were told.

Fast-forward to today. The Stars hold fast to the very definition of unremarkable with a 14-14-7 record. In fact, if we are being realistic, this is the rule, not the exception. This organization has made the playoffs in only two of the previous eight seasons. And if form holds this year, we are looking at two of nine.

For all the talk of this outfit being built and run the right way, the results just don’t add up. The only constant is underachievement. Regardless of the injury situation this team encountered to begin the campaign, their big names are still out on the ice. What’s troubling is that the big names are not playing to their paper.

So is there a short term solution? Can the Stars find a way to get hot and string a few wins together? The short answer is an apprehensive “maybe”. Teams have been known to squeak in as an eight seed and win the Stanley Cup (see: 2011-2012 Los Angeles Kings). What the Stars lack, though, is a Jonathan Quick-like presence in net.

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Any upswing would have to come from the offensive end, more than likely. Their anemic 2.54 goals per game average really needs to trend north of three for a solid month if they have any designs on capturing a playoff berth. The division title is nothing more than a pipe dream at this point. Chicago and Minnesota have made the NHL Central a two-horse race, although St. Louis might have something to say about it before it’s all said and done. The harsh reality is that the Stars won’t defend their division championship in any way, shape or form.

So what if they continue to struggle and miss the playoffs? It will be interesting to see if GM Jim Nill decides to stand pat with his forwards and defensemen. Will it be time to reconsider the Tyler Seguin era in Dallas? Though no fault of his own, he’s had problems staying on the ice when his team needs him most. His injuries have been seemingly blatant and almost horrific, and their timing couldn’t have been any worse. But the fact remains that the return on investment isn’t paying the dividends we thought it would.

Most glaringly, they simply cannot stand still on their situation in goal. While there has been a recent stretch of spectacular play by Antti Niemi, the overall state of their goaltending is this club’s Achilles heel. Both Niemi (2.85 GAA) and Kari Lehtonen (2.87 GAA) don’t even begin to sniff the top twenty. In a league where an elite backstop means everything between Cup contention and an early spring vacation, this simply won’t cut it.

Next: How Randy Gregory Can be a Difference Maker in the Playoffs

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All isn’t lost yet, though. 47 games remain. The Dallas Stars do have time to get themselves out of this win-lose-win-lose rut. But as we used to say toward the end of practice, we’re burning daylight here. The time to make a run is now. If they can’t do it, we’ve seen this maddeningly inconsistent and frustrating movie before.

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