Dallas Stars Mailbag Volume 1: Behind the bench, young talent, and more

Since the Stars have been off for most of this week, here’s the first of a few online mailbags answering your questions, doubts, or concerns about the Dallas Stars.

With the NHL season crossing its quarter mark, let’s hop into the first Dallas Stars’ mailbag of the year.

It depends. As of now, Khudobin has been the number one for the past few games since Ben Bishop was ruled out with a lower-body injury. Bishop did start last Saturday in the Stars’ game against the Vancouver Canucks, where he posted a .960 save percentage and only allowed one goal on 25 shots.

Bishop has a 9-5-1 record and two shutouts in 16 games this season. He is currently sporting a 2.25 goals against average (GAA) and .925 save percentage, which is pretty good.

Khudobin, on the other hand, has been playing well lately, too. He is 6-5-2 on the season with a 2.71 GAA and .915 save percentage.

The Stars switched to a two-goalie system a few years ago when they had Antti Niemi and Kari Lehtonen on the roster. Both played well in the 2015-16 season, winning 25 games each. Bishop ended up replacing Niemi when the Stars traded for him in May 2017, and Lehtonen became a free agent after last season, whereupon Jim Nill and the Stars brought in Khudobin.

Assuming Bishop stays healthy, he should be given the title as the Stars’ No. 1 goaltender. Should Khudobin get rolling, though, he could get the start.

All things considered, Monty has done pretty well as his first coaching season in the NHL. He’s had to fight through some roster injuries and a few tough road trips, but all in all, he’s doing solid at this point in the season.

The Stars had to switch to a more defensively-focused style of play with Ken Hitchcock last season to a more shot-heavy offense with Montgomery, but things look to be working out.  This is why players like Devin Shore, Esa Lindell, and Jason Dickinson have been flourishing as of late. As far as I can tell, Montgomery wants them to let their speed do the talking, and it’s paying off with goals.

I think that the Stars most important player this year has been Jamie Benn. He is second on the team in points (24), first in goals (12) and power-play goals (6), and third in assists (12). He also leads the team in penalty minutes with 28 (which is good or bad, depending on how you look at it), and has gotten in a few major fights that have helped fire the team up.

See here as an example:

Benn is also third on the team in hits with 53, behind Blake Comeau (70) and Roman Polak (64), respectively.

When Jamie Benn plays well, the team plays well. Because of that and all of the other reasons listed, I think he is the most valuable player on the roster.

Yes, yes, and yes. Miro Heiskanen is no doubt one of the most exciting and promising players in the league, especially among young players in the Stars’ organization. He was the third overall pick in the 2017 NHL draft and has been nearly perfect in his first NHL season. Julius Honka is also worth paying attention to, but his playing time has been limited as of late. Forwards Roope Hintz and Jason Dickinson have both been pleasant surprises this season and help add depth scoring to the Stars’ roster. Right winger Valeri Nichushkin is young and in his first season back from the KHL in Russia, and at only 23-years-old, can grow into a solid top six winger.

In terms of minor league prospects, Jason Robertson is an important name to pay attention to and is tearing it up in the Ontario Hockey League. Jake Oettinger, a goaltender at Boston University, is also a potential big-name prospect for the Stars and could join the Stars organization next season with the Texas Stars of the AHL or Idaho Steelheads of the ECHL.

Finally, the Stars’ first-round pick from the 2018 draft, Ty Dellandrea, is a leading point scorer for the Flint Firebirds of the OHL. All in all, there are a lot of prospects to be excited about.

Assuming everyone on the roster is healthy, here is how I think Jim Montgomery would align the lineup:

Offense

Benn-Seguin-Radulov

Comeau-Spezza-Nichushkin

Shore-Faksa-Ritchie

Janmark-Hanzal-Pitlick

Defense

Lindell-Klingberg

Johns-Methot

Heiskanen-Polak

Goalies

Bishop

Khudobin

Of course, the Stars shuffle lines regularly, even in games. But, if I were to guess, their starting roster would look something like that.

Maybe one day. (:

Do you have any other questions, Stars fans? Make sure to ask them in the future for our next mailbag!

• Published on 12/06/2018 at 18:01 PM
• Last updated at 12/06/2018 at 14:32 PM