Dallas Stars Daily Links: The Effects of Momentum

When it comes to hockey, momentum is critical. It’s what takes a team from an average performance to a dominating display, and can be the difference between a win or a loss. And it’s not as if momentum just suddenly “happens”; it’s a process in its own right:

A team doesn’t just automatically get momentum from a flat opening period to a third goal instantaneously. Conscious steps are taken in small doses to get the momentum trajectory going in the right direction, whether it comes from a big save by the goalie, a hit by a defenseman or scoring threats by any player.

Head coach Jim Montgomery and the rest of the Dallas Stars are big believers in momentum. Everyone is constantly looking for different ways to shift momentum in their favor, whether it’s through fights, goals, or just good offensive play:

“You see a really good power play with a lot of chances, the next line up, if they keep it rolling then everybody starts getting that feeling and the other team feels like they’re on their heels,” Jason Dickinson said. “That happens a lot in games and it’ll shift back and forth all game sometimes.”

You can read more about the Stars’ views on momentum from Saad Yousuf here.

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Stars Stories

Woohoo, the Stars won last night! Here is the lone goal in last night’s victory over the New York Rangers, courtesy of John Klingberg:

The game ended in a kerfuffle, which prompted this from goaltender Ben Bishop:

Of course the big news from the day came earlier, when it was announced that Alexander Radulov would be scratched due to being late for practice. But was it the right decision?

Had it not been for Radulov, the biggest pre-game storyline would have probably been Mats Zuccarello, who missed his first potential game against his old team as he recovers from injury:

You can hear Zuccarello’s full presser here:

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Wild Wild West

With last night’s win, the Stars are now only one point behind the St. Louis Blues for third in the Central. But the Blues aren’t the only Western Conference team that Dallas needs to keep an eye on:

• Talk about déjà vu. The Minnesota Wild lost in the shootout again to the Nashville Predators, only this time it was 5-4: [On the Forecheck]
• The Colorado Avalanche also went to overtime, though they ended up winning 4-3 over the Detroit Red Wings. [Winging it in Motown]
• Finally, the Arizona Coyotes’ winning streak ended at six, as they fell 3-1 to the Anaheim Ducks. [NHL]

Again, the Blues are only up one point on the Stars, albeit they have a game in hand. This is going to be close until the finish:

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League Links

Goaltending is magic, but we might as well try to figure it out anyways:

Currently, NHL players can keep playing if they lose their helmet, but is that about to change?

The state of the Ottawa Senators is truly depressing, even more so because it can (potentially) get even worse:

Finally, congratulations to Matt Cullen, who passed Mike Modano for second most games played by an American skater: