Dallas Stars acquire scoring and defensive depth, stay in playoff picture

In a season characterized by fits and starts, the Dallas Stars add veteran talent and manage to stay in the postseason picture.

If any four days provided a microcosm of the season for the Dallas Stars, it was the stretch between last Thursday and yesterday. In that time, they cooled off the hottest team in the league in the St. Louis Blues, looked listless against the Carolina Hurricanes, and then white-knuckled their way through a playoff-like win in Chicago yesterday afternoon.

Now under any normal circumstance, one would feel pretty good about winning two of three and holding on to the top wild card spot in the Western Conference. And for the most part, things are at least mostly positive, if not altogether rosy. In the grand scheme of things, the Central Division is going through a down year, and the Stars are the beneficiary of that overall slide.

Furthermore, spirits in the locker room have to be buoyed by the fact that the Stars went out and traded for depth on their blue line and forwards. As the NHL’s trade deadline looms, Dallas dealt for New Jersey defenseman Ben Lovejoy. Not to be outdone, they somewhat surprisingly traded for New York Rangers fan favorite Mats Zuccarello. Zuccarello’s arrival paid immediate dividends as he notched a goal, an assist, and a +3 rating in his debut as a Star.

But, this being the Stars, there’s a tragicomic element to Zucarello’s acquisition. For all the sizzle and splash he created in his first game, the warm fuzzies abruptly faded when a shot deflected off his arm late in the second period. He did not return, and is likely to miss the next four weeks with the ever-nebulous “upper body injury”. It doesn’t take a whole lot of reading between the lines to understand that has a broken bone in his arm and will miss the next month, or more, as the injury heals.

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No other team feels bad for the Stars, though, and they will have to sally forth without their new toy for the time being. Oh, one further bit of bad news. Captain Jamie Benn also left the game after two shifts and did not return. His injury, however, was categorized by head coach Jim Montgomery as day-to-day. So hopefully they won’t be without the services of their captain for too much longer. The simple fact of the matter is no team at this juncture of the season is operating at 100%. Injuries are part of the story. But in a season beset by periodic frustration, Zuccarello’s and Benn’s injuries only serve to rub a little salt in the wound.

It’s the loser’s lament, but this team could use a little luck in the worst way. For every step forward, there seems to be an equal–and sometimes greater–step back. Yet through it all, they remain in a playoff spot. There have been plenty of times during this season for the team to get discouraged and maybe not try so hard. But they haven’t done that. For every Carolina debacle, there’s typically been a rebound, a la yesterday’s zany win in Chicago. Sure, the Blackhawks aren’t exactly their Cup winning best right now, but they can still score goals at an astonishing rate. Further, no one in the Stars’ room will quibble about two regulation points against a divisional opponent on the road.

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As the season grinds toward the Stanley Cup playoffs, this Stars team has displayed a likable quality. Sure, there are some nights where they have problems getting out of their own way. But they’ve also shown moxie and heart in some places where you didn’t expect. There’s no quit in this bunch, and if they can squeeze into the playoffs, they have the defense and goaltending to be a terrifying out in a seven game series.

Published on 02/25/2019 at 13:01 PM
Last updated at 02/25/2019 at 07:53 AM

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