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Dallas Stars Daily Links: Goaltending Decisions

Were the Stars right to ride Jake Oettinger for back-to-back nights instead of giving a game to Anton Khudobin? Plus, interviews from last night’s loss, the NWHL plans to complete its playoffs, and more.

It’s hard to look at last night’s 4-3 loss against the Nashville Predators and blame goaltender Jake Oettinger for the loss. But that doesn’t mean the Dallas Stars’ decision to go with the rookie goaltender was not at least somewhat puzzling.

Oettinger had played the previous night against the Columbus Blue Jackets, recording his first career shutout. Given his play and relatively low workload (21 shots against), Rick Bowness and Jeff Reese decided to stick with Oettinger against Nashville:

“This kid works hard, in the gym and on the ice. First on, last off,” Bowness said. “(His) conditioning is great so we’re not worried about that one bit. If it was a tougher game (Saturday) night, like 40 or 50 shots against, then you re-evaluate that.”

In the past, however, the Stars have typically chosen to split starts between goaltenders during back-to-back games. It’s also worth noting that Anton Khudobin has historically performed very well against Nashville:

Against teams he’s started at least 10 games, Khudobin’s best save percentage is .935, against the Predators (13 games) and Ottawa Senators (10 games). With an ultra-condensed schedule, Bowness has emphasized the importance of having two goaltenders ready. This would seem like a prime opportunity to help get Khudobin back on track against a team that’s bad and he’s personally enjoyed success against in the past.

You can read more about the decision from Saad Yousuf here.

Stars Stories

Regardless of who was in net, ultimately the Stars were at least able to salvage a point, although it wasn’t enough:

Here’s Rick Bowness’ full post-game interview about the comeback loss:

Here’s Jason Robertson, who scored the game-tying goal because he’s been on fire lately:

And here’s Pavelski on how the team is still striving for success:

Around the League

The Tampa Bay Lightning also overcame a 3-0 deficit last night, except they ended up winning their game against the Chicago Blackhawks 6-3:

The other Central Division matchup featured the Florida Panthers and the Carolina Hurricanes, with Carolina securing the 4-2 win:

Washington Capitals forwarded Tom Wilson was suspended seven games by the Department of Player Safety, but was it enough?

Panic is starting to set in for some NHL teams, with two coaches fired already and more potentially on their way:

Finally, Happy International Women’s Day — the NWHL is planning to complete it’s playoffs later this month:

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