Dallas Stars Daily Links: Lehtinen Night Is Here At Last

Where will you be when the Dallas Stars retire Jere Lehtinen’s number? One of the most eagerly awaited events of the 25th-anniversary season finally happens tonight, before the Stars take on the Calgary Flames. The ceremony starts at 6:30 p.m., so be in your seats, wherever you are. Check out the run of show here. [Dallas Stars]

If you haven’t yet, read Taylor’s encomium for one of the Stars’ all-time greats, and check out the microsite the team has set up. [DallasStars.com/Lehtinen]

Fellow Stars icons Brett Hull, Joe Nieuwendyk, Ed Belfour and Guy Carbonneau will be on hand – and those who can’t be present, including Derian Hatcher, Jamie Langenbrunner, Mike Modano and Sergei Zubov, have already sent their praise.

If you get to American Airlines Center early enough, you may even be able to snap up one of these (list price: $59.99).

Sean Shapiro talked with Jere, who serves as GM of the Finnish National Team, about the future star he sees in Miro Heiskanen. [Wrong Side of the Red Line]

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More Stars

As we U.S. Americans awake from our food comas and try to remember what happened Wednesday: Ken Hitchcock addressed the Stars’ anemic road record after Wednesday’s disappointing 3-0 loss to the Colorado Avalanche.

The road troubles are one thing, but the divisional struggles are another. Mike Heika talks about what the Stars have to do to win their place in the playoffs.

That said, SportsDayDFW reached out during the holiday to give thanks for Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin.

The community can also be thankful for Jason Spezza: He observed the season by visiting with homeless children and families at the Dallas Life Shelter.

And you, dear reader, may be grateful to hear that Julius Honka is on the way back to Big D. (Meanwhile, Curtis McKenzie and Texas Stars G Mike McKenna are returning to Cedar Park.)

Mattias Janmark, Devin Shore and Martin Hanzal are among the NHL players who are currently below league average in 5-on-5 shooting percentage. (Fun fact: So is Sidney Crosby.) Are they due for a return to the mean? [Dobber Hockey]

And is Ben Bishop playing like a top-tier netminder? Jared Clinton of The Hockey News singles him out as one of five NHL goalies who need to turn things around.

Around the league(s)

The NHL takes Turkey Day off, so all the action took place on Wednesday. ICYMI, here’s what else happened in the #MDK:

• Nino Niederreiter and Mikael Granlund each scored twice (with each netting a power-play goal) as the Minnesota Wild defeated the Buffalo Sabres, 5-4. [Hockey Wilderness]
• Depth scoring (and Andrei Vasilevskiy) helped the Tampa Bay Lightning to a 3-2 OT win over the Chicago Blackhawks. [Raw Charge]
• Jordie Benn scored first, but Kyle Turris was the shootout hero as the Nashville Predators outlasted the Montreal Canadiens 3-2. [On The Forecheck]
• And Steve Mason made 38 saves as the Winnipeg Jets nabbed a 2-1 win over the Los Angeles Kings, who have lost six of their past seven games. [Reuters]

You know the rule: A team has to be in playoff position by U.S. Thanksgiving. Rory Boylen writes about why it’s important. [Sportsnet]

Also at Sportsnet: A new 30-minute feature on American Phenom in Canada Auston Matthews will go live Sunday, Nov. 26.

The Vegas Golden Knights’ debut in Dallas joined Brian Boyle’s first goal after his leukemia diagnosis and Jaromir Jagr meeting the Traveling Jagrs among the best moments of the season so far. (Bonus: Wayne Simmonds in the Philadelphia Flyers’ new Ric Flair-inspired PotG-wear.) [NHL]

Alex Prewitt of Sports Illustrated did a ride-along with Paul Bissonnette, now of the Coyotes Radio Network, who’s probably the most famous regional broadcaster in hockey.

The NHL should probably make a point of letting people know when and where Wes McCauley is refereeing. Imagine the ratings!

Check this out: When the singer failed to arrive on time for a game between Akademici Plzeň and the University of West Bohemia, a referee sang the Czech national anthem instead.

Finally

The holidays are all about family, and maybe about the friends you make along the way. Jamie and Jordie Benn said that, probably, and I’m pretty sure Alexander Radulov did, too. Enjoy.