Dallas Stars: No Need to Wait to Dismiss Lindy Ruff

The Dallas Stars front office has no reason to wait until the end of the season to relieve Lindy Ruff from his coaching duties.

It is no secret that the Dallas Stars are mired in a woefully forgettable season. Injuries essentially derailed the year before it even got started. Specifically, injuries to their forward group really put a damper on their ability to score goals. Where last year’s team outscored their problems, this year’s squad hasn’t even come close.

Consequently, losses continue to pile up. Defense continues to be an afterthought with this bunch. Sieve-like goaltending cannot clean up the mess. The spirit is strong; these guys haven’t given up. But the collective flesh is weak. Too many times this season, just when they appear ready to turn a corner, the dam breaks.

Nowhere was this more on display than during last night’s 5-3 loss to the Nashville Predators. To wit, the Stars came out and matched the Predators’ intensity en route to building a 3-0 lead. Finally, Dallas showed some fight. They showed opportunism in scoring three power play goals. They flashed some grit. It was enough to make one ask, “Where has this been all year?”

But alas, this is the Dallas Stars. Things never go easy. Nashville was on the second night of a back-to-back and had been drilled by Florida the night before. The Predators looked hapless and ready to roll over. But just when a win seemed to be a foregone conclusion, they broke the shutout in the latter stages of the second period.

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From there, the Stars resembled a boxer who’d been stunned late in a round. They held on for the remainder of the period as Nashville sent wave after wave into the Dallas zone and threatened to cut further into the lead.

Thankfully, the Stars made it to the intermission still nursing a 3-1 advantage. Things quickly got out of hand, though, as the Predators tilted the rink in the third stanza and ultimately scored four more goals to put the game away. It would have been surprising if it hadn’t been happening all year.

So this begs the question: Why wait until the end of the season to make changes? Rumors have already started swirling regarding head coach Lindy Ruff’s job status if the team doesn’t make the postseason tournament. After this recent run in which the Stars have lost six of their last seven games, there’s no reason to think a massive improvement is in the cards down the home stretch.

Furthermore, since December 31st, the Dallas Stars have managed an underwhelming 6-11-3 record. It’s not exactly the makeup of a team destined for the playoffs. Barring an unforeseen miracle, there’s no reason to think the Stars are headed in the right direction this year. Last night’s debacle was an all too familiar calling card of a team unable to find answers when it needs them most.

Unfortunately, this falls at the feet of the head coach and his staff. While the injuries hurt, so to speak, the coaching was never able to step in and stanch the flow of mental lapses and losses. On far too many occasions, the same mistakes happen over and over. This is why the Stars find themselves in their particular predicament. This is also why General Manager Jim Nill doesn’t need to wait until the end of the year to let Ruff go. The experiment has proven to be a dead end.

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This doesn’t speak to Ruff’s character. He says all the right things after losses. He takes the blame and answers the tough questions. By all accounts, he’s a great hockey coach and an even better person. The man is in the NHL Top 10 for career wins by a head coach. But the Dallas Stars need a shakeup behind the bench. Every day that passes without it delays the progress of this organization.

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