Dallas Stars Game 15: The Good and the Bad

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Dallas Stars 4-3 win at Vancouver Canucks

Shots: Dallas 29, Vancouver 28

PP: Dallas 0-4, Vancouver 0-3

The Good:

Mixing up the lines- Smith was bumped up to the second line. Ryder moved down a line. Roussel teamed back up with Eakin. It all worked. The first line was creative as always. They didn't do much in terms of production but they were always a threat and played well both ends of the ice. Second line had some pop. Smith scored his first NHL goal, Eriksson had several good chances and they were really good on the back-check. Not fun to see Ryder out of the top 6 but he’s struggling and Eakin and Roussel provided some great energy and physicality and helped Ryder to two assists. Fiddler line was gritty and strong on forecheck and back-check as always and they provided the fights that sparked the teamed and turned the game around.

Full team contributions- No goals from Benn, Jagr, Roy, Eriksson or Ryder. Who scored? Smith, Eakin, Roussel and Dillon stepped up. The “little” guys came up big. The defense wasn’t pretty but as the game went along they started playing stronger and got much better at getting the pucks out of the slot and into the corners. Bachman came in during the first period and didn’t play too well, but played well enough to get the win. PK held strong against a Vancouver power play full of weapons. It was a full team effort and probably the best two points the Stars have earned this season.

Stars goal #1: Smith's first NHL goal! 

Stars goal #2: Eakin puts in a rebound off Schneider.

Stars goal #3: Roussel gets the puck and puts it past the heap of bodies in front.

Stars goal #4: Benn (bottom right) made a cross-ice pass to a streaking Dillon,who ripped it over Schneider's left shoulder.

3 fights in 3 seconds- wow! If this didn’t get your attention or get you out of your seat, I’m not sure what will. Garbutt versus Volpatti. Fiddler versus Lapierre. Nystrom versus Weise. The whole line fought! I don’t think I’ve ever seen a full line fight one after another. And Dillon said their new nickname is The Hanson Brothers! The last fight was the best in terms of the most punches being landed, but the first fight was between two former teammates and had a few punches thrown. The second fight was a surprise in that Fiddler (Fiddler!?!?) of all people fought, and it was against a pesky guy who isn't a stranger to fights. The third was just a meteor shower of fists being thrown back and forth. The fights turned the game around and gave the Stars a momentum boost that propelled them to a comeback victory.

Garbutt started it off fighing Volpatti. A few punches were thrown, Volpatti ended on top. (Getty Images)

Fiddler, yes old man Fiddler, got in on the action fighting pesky Lapierre. This was the quicker fight, but pretty intense. Fiddler ended on top. (Getty Images)

Nystrom wrapped up the fighting in a meteor shower of fists between him and Weise. (Getty Images)

A full line in the box at the same time for fighting. The Hanson Brothers Line? 

The Bad:

Richard Bachman- Yes, he got the win. But what happened to Bachman in the summer? Last season he was dominant in goal. He swallowed pucks giving up no rebounds. He was always in position. He played big despite his size. This season he can’t play the puck well. He gives up a rebound on almost every save. He takes a while to get into position. And he seems to lack confidence in his abilities, always peeking behind to see if the puck is in the net or panicking to get in position and make a save. He did make a few big saves, and he got the win in the end, but he didn’t play anywhere near what we’ve come to expect of him after last season.

Stars got lucky when the refs waved off Raymond's goal. They said it was goalie interference, but in all honesty, the puck was well on its way to the net before Raymond collided with Bachman. and the collision didn't really stopBachman from making the save. 

Kari Lehtonen injury- This gets its own paragraph simply because, depending on the extent of the injury, this could be a season-changer. He skated off and Gulutzan didn’t say that it seemed very serious but a groin (or knee) injury is nothing to mess with when it’s to a goalie. And he’s had some trouble with his groin. Last season against the Coyotes he made a kick save and was out with a groin pull. If Lehtonen misses extended time, this season is going to turn into a huge question mark. The team would go from a playoff bubble team to a “how long can they survive?” team. We’ve seen glimpses of greatness from Bachman and Nilstorp, but we’ve also been treated to some less-than-stellar outings. Hopefully the Stars best player isn’t out for a long time, our playoff hopes rely on him behind a superhero in net every game.

Schroeder skated in and took a shot. Lehtonen blockered it aside but immediately jerked and winced. He waved to the bench and pointed at his lower body, looked like his groin was pulled. 

Defense behind the net-The Stars have struggled all season defending when an opponent holds the puck behind the Stars net. Oleksiak seemed to be strong at it simply from his gargantuan reach, but the Stars seem to hesitate or panic every time they are put in that position. Even when they seem to line up correctly and be in position a simple pass goes through the men at the posts and to a wide open person in the slot or in the circles. The Canucks went after this weakness more than any Stars opponent so far this season. They connected on dozen or so passes from behind the net to an open player but couldn’t convert on the opportunities.

This was an example of what the Canucks, especially their top line, did a lot. set up behind the net, make a pass to someone in the slot or in the circles for a good one-timer. 

Lines seen tonight:

Morrow-Benn-Jagr

Smith-Roy-Eriksson

Roussel-Eakin-Ryder

Nystrom-Fiddler-Garbutt

Rome-Daley

Dillon-Robidas

Goligoski- Larsen

PP- Morrow-Benn-Jagr-Daley-Robidas

PP- Eriksson-Roy-Ryder-Goligoski-Larsen

PK- Fiddler-Nystrom-Daley-Rome

PK- Eriksson-Roy-Robidas-Goligoski

PK- Roussel-Eakin-Daley-Rome

Notable Notes:

Very fortunate Benn didn't get a serious injury on this slide into the boards. 

Canucks goal #1: Bachman took too long scrambling to get set and Daniel Sedin backhanded it in.

Canucks goal #2: Higgins' shot was going to Bachman's glove side, it hits off of Robidas' stick and ends up going right and into the net.

Canucks goal #3: Henrik Sedin (top left) passes it through all those people and sticks right to Burrows (bottom right) for the one-timer goal. 

Rome was smart to duck and avoid the hit from Volpatti. Ralph Strangis said it right: Volpatti was ready to end his night."

Stars couldn't handle Canucks' set up on the PP. Daniel (22, in the middle) was the decoy several times for a pass to go through to a wide open Ryan Kesler.

This is not how you want to see a hockey team play defense.

Again, Canucks went with what's successful against the Stars: two man aggressive forecheck. but they didn't do it as much as the game went along. 

Another close call. Thought Roussel was injured, but he got up fine.

What i thought was the biggest hit of the night. Dillon laid out Burrows.

Look at this coordination. Mid-game, mid-play Roy deflects a shot from the blue line, but it hits the crossbar. 

Reilly Smith finally got his first NHL goal. 

Kesler vs Roy

Henrik Sedin received a roaring standing ovation that lasted several minutes. His second assist of the night made him the franchise's all-time scoring leader. (Getty Images)

A Fistful Victory. Dallas Stars Game 15: 4-3 Win at the Vancouver Canucks

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They saved the best for last.

The Dallas Stars ended their three-game western Canada road trip with a full team effort in a 4-3 come-from-behind victory at the previously streaking Vancouver Canucks Friday night.

Kari Lehtonen left the game with a lower-body injury with 6:11 left in the first period, but the Stars rallied to a victory behind Richard Bachman, three fights in three seconds and goals from depth players.

Lehtonen stopped all seven shots he faced, but he seemed to possibly tweak his groin on a shot by Justin Shroeder. Bachman wasn’t stellar in net, but he stopped 18 of the 21 shots he faced, including a few saves on shots from the slot and a potential game-tying slap shot with 8 seconds left in the game.

With 3:20 left in the first period the Canucks seem to be the first on the board when Jannik Hansen made a centering feed to Mason Raymond who tapped the puck into the net as he crashed the net. It was immediately waved off due to goalie interference. The Stars won the ensuing faceoff and Derek Roy and Loui Eriksson battled to get the puck into the Vancouver zone. Eriksson tapped the puck forward to Reilly Smith who wristed his first NHL goal past Corey Schneider.

The Canucks took over the game early in the second period, scoring three goals in the first 10 minutes. Henrik Sedin’s second assist of the night gave the Canucks a 3-1 lead, and he became Vancouver’s all-time scoring leader. The Canucks had taken over the game and the fans gave Sedin a roaring standing ovation that lasted several minutes.

The Stars were in desperate need of a wakeup call, a momentum shift of some kind. They got it in the form of three fights spanning a total of three seconds with less than five minutes left in the second period.  Ryan Garbutt fought Aaron Volpatti, Vernon Fiddler fought Maxim Lapierre and Eric Nystrom fought Dale Weise.

A couple of minutes after the fighting ended, Cody Eakin scored a goal when Trevor Daley took a shot from the point that Corey Schneider couldn’t hold on to. Eakin skated in and put the loose puck in the net.

Antoine Roussel tied the game 12:22 into the third period when he put home a puck through a mass of bodies just outside the crease. Finally with 3:01 left in the third, Jamie Benn fired a pass from the left boards through the slot and over to a streaking Brenden Dillon who wristed the puck over Schneider’s left shoulder.

The Stars missed a couple of opportunities for an empty net goal and the Canucks had a final chance with 10 seconds left to tie the game. Bachman made a save off a booming slap shot, and Stephane Robidas pinned the puck against the boards behind the net to kill the rest of the clock.

The Stars won two of three on the road trip and four of their past five games overall. They begin a three-game home stand against the Calgary Flames Sunday afternoon.  

Dallas Stars Game 14: The Good and the Bad

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Dallas Stars 7-4 loss at Calgary Flames

Shots: Dallas 34, Calgary 23

PP: Dallas 2-4, Calgary 2-2

The Good:

Brenden Morrow- Sure Benn and Jagr created many opportunities and the third line constantly put on offensive pressure, but Morrow seemed to have something extra tonight. He was vintage Morrow. Checking, winning the board battles, hammering the net, owning the crease. He was himself tonight. and he had two patented goals to show for it. And every time he touched the puck in the offensive zone, he seemed to be a threat. I still don’t understand why Gulutzan didn’t put him on the power play though.

Morrow's first goal: Jagr had the puck (left) and passed it to Morrow in front of the net and he put the puck between Irving's legs.

Morrow's second goal: Jagr passed to Oleksiak and the puck came loose of his stick toward the net. Before Irving could cover the puck, Morrow put his stick in under Irving's glove and pushed the puck into the back of the net.

Forecheck- The Stars forecheck was ferocious. They forced numerous turnovers, most notably one that led to Nystrom’s goal. Before that, it led to great chances where Garbutt was robbed by Irving. They threw 2 men deep and it paid off, but for some reason when the Stars needed a goal, when they needed that pressure in the final 10 minutes of the game, the forecheck seemed lazy and less effective. Instead of a strong forecheck we saw more defensemen pinching in.

A good, aggressive forecheck forced a turnover and Fiddler patiently held the puck attracting all of the Flames' attention. He then dished the puck off to Nystrom who snuck into a an open space in the circle and ripped a one-timer in. 

Battle back- There isn’t much good to take out of this game, but two things do need to be acknowledged: they did finally outshoot an opponent… big time (34-23) and they did fight back. Each time the Stars scored the team clearly picked up momentum and seemed to get themselves back into the game. Then a defensive lapse would happen, they’d give up a goal and it felt like the night was over, then the Stars scored again and the thought was “just one good shot and we’re right back in this.” The loss hurts, but it was on a back-to-back and it was on the road. Take some positive from it and use it against the Canucks Friday.

The Bad: (instead of simply saying defense and defensive coverages, I’ll be more specific)

Passes across the slot- Like I pointed out in the last game, the Stars did ok taking away shots but they left passes, specifically passes across the slot, wide open. Completely wide open. It felt like a video game: skate in, pass it across the slot for a one-timer and it’s a goal. Rinse and repeat. They were fortunate the Oilers couldn’t capitalize but 5 of Calgar’s 7 goals were on cross-slot passes for one-timers.

Calgary goal #2: Tanguay held the puck (far left) and made a pass to an open Hudler in the slot for a one-timer. 

Calgary goal #3: Iginla had the puck (far right, off picture) and sent a pass through the middle of the ice to a wide open Cammalleri who immediately put it in the back of the net.

Calgary goal #6: Ryder got tangled up with Glencross at center ice and fell, the Flames skated in with a 3-on-1 and Cervenka was wide open for a pass that Iginla sent through Rome.

Surviving the forecheck- Yet again, the same problem. The Stars are powerless against an aggressive two-man forecheck. Haven’t seen much difference in the way of planning to counter it, and the Stars continued doing what they do best when trying to get out of their zone: overpass to a turnover, cough up a simple turnover, reverse to try exiting again and struggle again eventually turning it over.

An example of Calgary's extremely aggressive, effective forecheck early in the game.

Just wanted to add that the Flames took the same approach on the PK. They rushed the puck and kept the Stars PP unit on their toes and on the move.

Covering late man in- The Flames made a (dangerous) habit of entering the zone, pushing to the net and dropping the puck back or making a little back pass to a trailing man skating all alone into the zone. Almost every time the Stars were too focused and over-pursuing the man with the puck, leaving the trailer wide open for a blast or with enough room to skate in and get a quality chance.

Calgary goal #1: A mass of bodies was focused directly in front of the net and on the puck so Boumeester simply skated up and snapped the loose puck through the bodies and into the net.

Richard Bachman- It wasn’t all him… but he did have a big part in the ugly final score. He didn’t play like the Bachman we saw last season. He was terrible controlling rebounds. He took entirely too many peaks behind to see if the puck was in the net. He was sluggish moving side to side. Took too long to play the puck several times, leading to chances.

Alex Goligoski- I’ll simply put it this way: he was beyond horrible. He gave up turnover after turnover in his own zone, he failed to keep in the offensive zone a number of times, he lost control of the puck along the boards a lot, he fumbled passes throughout the game and on (at least) two of the Flames’ goals you can clearly point to Goligoski as the main reason for a goal against. Simply terrible in every facet of the game tonight. He did get an assist, so I guess not every facet… but still… you get the idea.

Faceoffs- The Stars won 40 of the 77 faceoffs, but if you look back at the game, the Flames were tossed out way more times than the Stars. The Stars were only tossed out once or twice that I remember, but the Flames were constantly being tossed. So the Flames won almost as many faceoffs as the Stars with essentially their second-string draw-taker on the line against the Stars’ main center. Benn won 17 of 28, Roy won 10 of 19, Fiddler won 8 of 17 and Eakin won 4 of 12. So basically take out Benn and the Stars were atrocious on faceoffs.

Lines seen tonight:

Morrow-Benn-Jagr

Eriksson-Roy-Ryder

Nystrom-Fiddler-Garbutt

Smith-Eakin-Roussel

Goligoski- Oleksiak

Daley-Rome

Dillon-Robidas

PP- Morrow-Benn-Jagr-Daley-Robidas

PP- Roy-Jagr-Benn-Eriksson-Ryder (on the 5-on-3 opportunity)

PK- Fiddler-Nystrom-Robidas-Dillon

PK- Eriksson-Roy-Rome-Oleksiak

PK- Eakin-Garbutt-Dillon-Robidas

PK- Eriksson-Roy-Rome-Daley

Notable Notes:

• Calgary’s Jay Bowmeester played in his NHL-leading 599^th consecutive game.
• The Stars are now 1-15-2 in the second game of a back-to-back over the past two seasons, and they’ve been outscored 63-29 in those games. 

Calgary goal #4: Simply another cross-ice pass to an open man in the slot for an easy goal. 

Calgary goal #5: A shot from the point (upper right) went wide, bounced off the boards, hit off of Stempniak (far left) and was put into the net by an untouched Cammalleri.

Not a goal but another wide open shot from a cross-ice pass. This one luckily rang off the crossbar.

Roussel fought Iginla early in the 3rd. Only a few punches landed and Iginla ended up on top. 

Up In Flames. Dallas Stars Game 14: 7-4 Loss at the Calgary Flames

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Yet again, the Dallas Stars fell short in the second game of a back-to-back, but this time it was truly ugly as they lost 7-4 at the Calgary Flames Wednesday night.

The Stars’ winning streak ended at four, but they added yet another loss to their dismal 1-15-2 record in the second game of a back-to-back over the past two seasons. They’ve now been outscored 63-29 in those games.

Backup goalie Richard Bachman had a rough night, stopping 16 of 22 shots, but to be fair, he didn’t get very much help from his teammates either.

Mike Cammalleri scored a hat trick and four other Flames added goals in the game. Captain Brenden Morrow scored two goals for the Stars and Eric Nystrom and Cody Eakin added one each. The Stars fell to a 3-0 deficit midway through the first period and could never recover. Nearly each time they scored they were simply reducing a three-goal deficit to two, and then they would surrender another goal to fall back further.

The Stars struggled against the Flames’ aggressive forecheck, turned the puck over often and failed to have proper defensive coverage, especially on passes across the slot. Five of Calgary’s seven goals were scored on one-timers from passes across the slot.

Antoine Roussel fought Calgary captain Jarome Iginla early in the second period, and the Stars only took three other penalties, but the Flames scored on their two power play opportunities. The Star went 2-for-4 on the power play and earned a rare achievement in outshooting their opponents (34-23).

Morrow stood out as a bright spot for the Stars. He seemed to be his vintage self. He threw his body around, won battles along the boards, went to the net with ferocity and scored both of his goals in the crease.

The Stars have a day to rest and work on their gameplan before they visit the Vancouver Canucks Friday night. 

Dallas Stars Game 13: The Good and the Bad

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Dallas Stars 4-1 win at Edmonton Oilers

Shots: Dallas 29, Edmonton 36

PP: Dallas 0-3, Edmonton 0-5

The Good:

Garbutt's goal: won the race to the puck, took it to the net, withstood two hacks and still managed to pop it into the net past Dubnyk.

3rd line- Nystrom, Fiddler and Garbutt provided an evident spark. Not that Roussel was bad, but Garbutt provided more of an offensive punch than Roussel. The trio combined for 4 total points, 2 of the Stars’ goals, 5 shots, 5 hits and 2 takeaways while none of the trio registered skated more than 14 and a half minutes. They were gritty. They were strong on the forecheck. They won numerous battles in the defensive zone. Overall a strong performance from all three linemates. Fiddler’s battles along the boards directly led to both Nystrom and Garbutt’s goals.

Kari Lehtonen- Simply said, without him, the Oilers could’ve easily had 4 or 5 more goals on the board… at least. His larceny on the goal line on Nugent-Hopkins stood out as arguably the largest singular save but there were many instances of Lehtonen standing on his head for the team. He really took charge on the penalty kill. The Stars had a tendency to overcommit and over pursue on defense and he bailed them out time after time. The 35 shots were simple shots or lobs, they were on cross-ice one-timers, high-flying streaks into the zone and swift puck handling (like mostly seen from Yakupov, Hemsky and Eberle). He’s still Dallas’ best player, but as good as he is, he shouldn’t be relied on to do so much so often.

Lehtonen robbed Nugent-Hopkins on this opportunity in the 3rd period.

Pesky Stars return?- The Stars played to their M.O. from last season. Their goals were ugly, gritty goals. Dillon threw the puck at the net, it bounced off a defender, off the glass, off of Dubnyk’s back and into the net. Nystrom threw the puck through traffic from the blue line. Jagr collected a blocked shot in the slot and wristed it into the net. Garbutt charged at the net, withstood two major hacks at his feet and snapped it past Dubnyk. They didn’t fight, but they were physical, feisty and determined.

Fistric didn't play nice against his former team, but they responded with their own physicality and grittiness (and laughter like Fiddler showed in this picture).

Penalty Kill- The Stars faced a very powerful and skilled Oilers' Power Play 5 times and they killed each one. Edmonton was the 2nd best team on the PP in the league and the Stars hung in against them. Not that the PK dominated, but they survived. They didnt give up many open shots but they did give way to wide open passes and cross-ice dishes that led to quality scoring chances. Lehtonen was the best part of the PK but in general, the units worked well and kept the strong Oilers PP off the board.

Stars cut off shots, but as can be seen here, cross-ice passes were left wide open. Eberle near the left post was wide open for the pass while the shot (and any pass) was completely shut down on the right.

The Bad:

Dealing with speed- The Stars clearly had trouble handling the speed of the Oilers. For the first two periods, the Stars seemed to panic and scrap just to try to keep up with the Oilers. Whether it was cycling the puck down low, moving the puck on the power play or coming into the zone with speed and flair, the Stars really struggled to keep up. The good thing is that even though they struggled to keep up, the Stars kept grinding and got ugly goals that won them the game.

Hall blew past three Stars into the zone on his goal. The Stars looked flat-footed on the play and Eriksson seemed to backcheck until it came to actually pressuring Hall as seen in the picture.

Edmonton's goal: Hall flew into the zone and shot the puck. Lehtonen misplayed the puck and it went past his glove. One he wanted back but he more than made up for it later.

Dealing with forecheck- The secret is out on what is the most effective way to get to the Stars: throw a speedy, physical 2-man forecheck. The Stars simply couldn’t make it out of their zone most of the game. It usually took more than 3 passes just to get out of the zone. They were forcing passes, lobbing the puck out and turning it over in their own zone constantly through the first two periods. Stars need to quickly figure out how to counter the two-man forecheck if they plan on making a run at the playoffs.

Oilers always had two men deep pressuring the Stars and they did not have an answer. They struggled to get past the forecheck nearly the entire game.

Goligoski- He took a step back from his last game. He looked tentative, hesitant and unconfident. He didn’t make any major defensive mistakes and didn’t cause any goals against but he didn’t do much at the other end either.

Lines seen tonight:

Morrow-Benn-Jagr

Eriksson-Roy-Ryder

Smith-Eakin-Vincour

Nystrom-Fiddler-Garbutt

Goligoski- Larsen

Daley-Rome

Dillon-Robidas

PP- Eriksson-Ryder-Smith-Roy-Daley

PP- Benn-Morrow-Jagr-Robidas-Goligoski

PP- Benn-Morrow-Jagr-Larsen-Goligoski

PK- Nystrom-Fiddler-Robidas-Dillon

PK-Roy-Eriksson-Daley-Rome

Notable Notes:

• Faceoffs- Stars struggled winning 27 of 50 faceoffs. Benn won 7 of 15, Roy won 8 of 16, Eakin won 7 of 13 and Fiddler won 4 of 10.

Dillon took the shot (as in the picture) from a distance. The puck hit off the defender's leg, bounced off the glass behind the net before it hit Dubnyk's back and fell into the goal. 

The moment before the puck hit off of Dubnyk's back and went into the net. ugly, strange, rare goal but Stars will take it any day.

Nystrom's goal: He and Fiddler battled along the boards, Nystrom took the puck skated from the corner to the blue line, turned around and threw the puck at the net. As seen in the picture Dubnyk didn't even see the puck through the bodies before it was too late.

Benn intercepting a pass at center ice and took the puck the other way which eventually led to Jagr's goal.

Daley took a shot at the net, it was blocked out in front, Jagr got the puck and wristed it past Dubnyk.

Just a moment/picture I liked from the game.

Slick As Oil. Dallas Stars Game 13: 4-1 Win at the Edmonton Oilers

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The Dallas Stars kicked off their three-game road trip through Western Canada with a gritty 4-1 win at the Edmonton Oilers Tuesday night. The victory was the Stars’ fourth consecutive win.

Kari Lehtonen was the Stars’ best player making 35 saves, including several key saves on the penalty kill and a goal line glove save on Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. The Stars’ fourth line of Eric Nystrom, Vernon Fiddler and Ryan Garbutt stood out scoring two of the team’s goals and adding two assists, five shots, five hits and two takeaways.

Edmonton scored first when Taylor Hall blazed into the Stars’ zone taking the puck out wide to his left. He threw the puck at the net and Lehtonen misplayed it as it snuck by his glove and into the net 12:59 into the first period.

The Stars tied the game less than five minutes into the second period when Brenden Dillon threw the puck at the net from the left point. It deflected off of a defender’s leg, bounced off the glass and hit Edmonton goalie Devan Dubnyk’s back before falling into the net.

Less than a minute into the third period, Fiddler and Nystrom won a puck battle along the boards in the Edmonton zone. Nystrom took the puck toward the blue line, turned and shot the puck at the net. Dubnyk was unable to see the puck through a mass of bodies in front as it hit his chest and went into the net.

With 4:35 left in regulation, the Stars entered the Oilers’ zone with numbers and speed. Trevor Daley took a shot that was blocked out in front of the net. Jagr collected the puck, turned to face the net and snapped it past Dubnyk.

On the final goal, Fiddler and Stepane Robidas were involved in a puck battle along the boards in their defensive zone. Fiddler stole the puck and passed it off the boards out of the zone. Garbutt sped to the puck and took it in stride to the net. He took two slashes at his legs but managed to get a shot in tight past Dubnyk’s blocker.

The Stars’ continue their road trip Wednesday night at the Calgary Flames before heading to Vancouver to face the Canucks on Friday.