Dallas Stars Daily Links: Texas GM Names His Rising Stars

The Texas Stars have just won seven playoffs games in a row, and it’s clear that several young players have leveled up. Dallas Stars assistant GM Scott White also serves as the T-Stars’ GM, and he’s ready to talk about where they are and what they’ve shown during the 2018 Calder Cup run.

White has been watching all the prospects, not just the first-rounders – so he’s had time to assess the roles that guys like defender Dillon Heatherington can play:

“He’s been good. He’s a defensive defenseman, simple with the puck.… Less time with the puck is good for him, so he’s moving it quickly.… He’s grinding, banging guys around in the playoffs. You need all types of defenseman and he fills an important role for us.… He’s a good character guy, good teammate.”

He’s also identified one player who he believes is ready to don a Dallas Stars sweater now:

“[Roope] Hintz has been dynamite. To me, he’s NHL ready. He’s dangerous on the ice, he’s engaged more physically, he’s learned that it’s a grind.… It’s hard for European players to adapt to the North American schedule. It’s such a grind to get to January, and he got through it. Then, the first-round series, he took a couple of huge hits and got right back up and finished a few hits of his own. I think that’s maturity.… He’s a talented player, and I think he’s right there.… I think he’s better at center. You can always move him around, but I think he’s better at center.”

As always, Mike has more. [Dallas Stars]

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Greetings From Scenic Cedar Park

Captain Curtis McKenzie – on quite a roll lately – has another GWG to his credit as the T-Stars defeat the Rockford IceHogs 6-5 on the road. The T-Stars could punch their ticket to the 2018 Calder Cup Finals as early as tomorrow night. [100 Degree Hockey]

Sean Shapiro brings the important stats:

More Stars

Have a question for Sean? His weekly Stars mailbag goes up Thursday at The Athletic DFW, so you may still have time to throw it in.

Heika hasn’t forgotten about his Stars chats, either – tag him on Twitter with #HeyHeika to get your questions in.

Around the League(s)

Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals takes place tonight, and the Washington Capitals have to win on the road to move on to the Stanley Cup Final. Can they seize the day one more time?

The home team has its own worries. Can the Tampa Bay Lightning shake off a scoring drought that has struck at the worst possible time?

Victor Hedman and Alex Ovechkin seem to agree on this much:

Meanwhile, in Teams That Don’t Exist Yet: The NHL Board of Governors will meet in Las Vegas two days before the NHL Draft in Dallas, which means the Seattle expansion countdown clock is ticking.

The New York Rangers finally appear to be almost ready to announce their replacement for Alain Vigneault. Boston University’s David Quinn is their guy, more or less.

Meanwhile, the New York Islanders made it official yesterday, announcing their hire of Lou Lamoriello. Now the new president of hockey operations takes responsibility for a lengthy honey-do list that includes a long-awaited new deal with John Tavares. [NHL]

Toronto Maple Leafs president Brendan Shanahan discussed the Kyle Dubas hire, and spoke candidly about the pressures involved in getting Your Guy Or Something Like Him before you lose the option (and all the rest of them, too).

Out west, the San Jose Sharks are circling an extension for Evander Kane that looks like seven years at $7 million AAV.

Finally

Aww, come on, was Patrik Laine’s beard really that bad? (It’s a rhetorical question. The answer is yes, it was.) Enjoy.