Dallas Stars Daily Links: Making Sense Of Getting Beaten Senseless

All things considered, failure probably is a better teacher than success. The Dallas Stars may take some solace in that idea as they try to shake off a 6-0 blistering by the struggling Vancouver Canucks.

The Stars came crashing back to Earth after a huge shootout win over the Pittsburgh Penguins on Friday. Stars digital correspondent Scott Burnside looks for some meaning with his latest Five Takeaways:

Vancouver, losers of four straight heading into Sunday, certainly qualified as a team against whom the Stars should have been able to take care of, had they brought the same level of commitment to the proceedings. But it didn’t turn out that way as the Canucks took advantage of one of the most disappointing periods of hockey the Stars have turned in this season to blow this one open early....

Adding to the discouragement of coming up so flat against a team that had 22 fewer points in the standings coming into the day is that it follows a trend of soft play heading into breaks. And out of breaks, for that matter. Dallas was beaten handily by Toronto and Los Angeles heading into and coming out of the All-Star break. Same thing after the bye week and coming out of the holiday break as the Stars were no match for Colorado or Minnesota, respectively.

Ben Bishop got yanked early in the second period after giving up a shocking four goals. He was looking for a little rhyme and reason, too:

“I think it was kind of a tale of two teams, a team that’s won five in a row and a team that’s lost four or five in a row, and they came out hard. And once we got behind the eight ball there, kind of tough to get things rolling,” Bishop said. “Got to give credit to them, They came out and they played really well in that first period and they took it to us, and you can’t take anybody lightly in this league.”

Scott has more at the official Stars website. [Dallas Stars]

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More Stars

Mike Heika, mincing no words, writes that the Stars blew the best chance they’ve had all season to grab a place in the Central Division’s top three. [SportsDayDFW]

For head coach Ken Hitchcock, the odd-man rushes were the biggest concern.

There’s nothing to do about a stinger except to walk it off. Razor leads by example in his latest Emporium.

But Jason Spezza would like to take issue with that denied goal that would have at least wiped out the shutout.

But while we’re still campaigning for Stars to get some well-deserved postseason love, can we start hyping Radek Faksa for the Selke Trophy? Mike Heika picks up the gauntlet thrown down by DBD’s own Derek Neumeier. [SportsDayDFW]

Around the League(s)

#Death On The Weekend

Most of the rest of the Dirty Central had their own problems yesterday:

• Jimmy Vesey scored the game-winner with 3:53 remaining in regulation as the New York Rangers took down the Winnipeg Jets 3-1. [Arctic Ice Hockey]
• Sidney Crosby got that 400th NHL goal against a different Central Division team as the Pittsburgh Penguins beat the St. Louis Blues 4-1. [Pensburgh]
• Only the Colorado Avalanche kept the #MDK banner off the ground – and even that was close as they finally beat the Buffalo Sabres 5-4. [Mile High Hockey]

Bad news for yet another young star: Sabres super-center Jack Eichel is out indefinitely with another high-ankle sprain. [Buffalo News]

And veteran goalie (and former Star) Mike Smith had to be helped off the ice 1.1 seconds before the Calgary Flames logged a 3-2 victory over the New York Islanders.

Elsewhere, Sean Couturier racked up three points as the Philadelphia Flyers stunned the Vegas Golden Knights 4-1.

Dustin Brown He Who Shall Not Be Named has received a one-game suspension for kneeing Mikhail Sergachev during the Los Angeles Kings’ 4-3 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning. [Los Angeles Times]

Joey Alfieri asks the same question you everyone was just thinking.

After years of cross-country travel that ranged from inconvenient to downright harrowing, the Jets now share an arena with their AHL affiliate. Tim Campbell takes a look at the team’s thriving relationship with the Manitoba Moose, and how their proximity is improving the prospect pipeline.

The NHL is playing during the Winter Olympics again, and the only thing different is that now it feels strange. J. James Lee, of DBD sibling site Jewels From The Crown, writes about how the league has missed a moment to shine on the world stage.

Greetings From Beautiful Boise

Sweeps are becoming a family affair for the Stars and their affiliates. Henrik Samuelsson earned three points and Philippe Desrosiers stopped 26 of 27 shots as the Idaho Steelheads beat the Colorado Eagles for the third time this season, 3-1.

Finally

In the future, everyone will get engaged at a hockey game. New Jersey Devils forward Miles Wood is the latest NHL’er to get a side hustle playing Cupid for two lucky fans. Enjoy.