Last Wednesday’s match-up against the Toronto Maple Leafs was more than your typical, run-of-the-mill cross-conference game for the Dallas Stars. It was the first time former Star Jason Spezza had returned to Dallas since parting ways with the franchise this past offseason.
Spezza spent five years wearing Victory Green, and the Stars played a tribute video for him during the first period, much to his excitement:
“It doesn’t hurt to see yourself scoring a few goals when you’re playing a game,” Spezza said before the game. “I really enjoyed it here in Dallas. I liked it. My family liked it. The ownership was great. Jim Nill’s one of the people I respect probably the most in hockey just for the way he does business and how honest he is. Just a great person. Coming back here, I’m just happy to see people.”
Ultimately, Spezza failed to win his elusive first Stanley Cup during his time in Dallas. But he has plenty of other fond memories to take its place:
“Winning playoff rounds bonds you more than anything,” Spezza said. “We had a year when we led the Western Conference in wins and we were scoring lots of goals and that was a really fun year to play. Seeing Benny win the scoring race was pretty cool… Lots of good memories and I enjoyed it here.”
You can read more from Matthew DeFranks here.
Stars Stories
Sean Shapiro answers your questions about… well pretty much everything in his latest mailbag:
This week’s mailbag: https://t.co/fRgpHwq9U8
— Sean Shapiro (@seanshapiro) January 30, 2020
Here’s what Rick Bowness has to say about the team’s past few games and the road moving forward:
“The last couple of games we’ve created a lot of offense, and that’s really good to see. We’re hoping that continues on the road.” – Bowness#GoStars pic.twitter.com/1nkwF16jNa
— Dallas Stars (@DallasStars) January 30, 2020
Doesn’t this just warm your heart?
.@Benbishop30 and his friend Blake teamed up during the holidays for a toy drive, and Stars fans showed out. Earlier this week, the two delivered nearly 500 toys to kids at Children’s Medical Center. 😊#GoStars pic.twitter.com/frznwlf5z6
— Dallas Stars (@DallasStars) January 30, 2020
Around the League
Nashville Predators General Manager David Poile now has the most wins as a GM in NHL history after his club’s 6-5 shootout win over the New Jersey Devils:
It was lively, but the #Preds managed to come out on top in this one. @SCSOTF and @_RKH80 have your tag-team recap of tonight’s win! https://t.co/v6442hhHS4
— On The Forecheck (@OnTheForecheck) January 31, 2020
If you thought the San Jose Sharks’ season couldn’t get any worse, well…
#SJSharks forward Tomas Hertl has suffered a torn ACL and MCL and will be out for the remainder of the season.
— San Jose Sharks (@SanJoseSharks) January 30, 2020
With Thomas Hertl now out, the Sharks really have no other choice but to chalk this season up as a loss:
The Sharks have lost their two best forwards to injury and appear set to sell at the deadline. What comes next? The rebuild.@THNKenCampbell with more:https://t.co/iMcsFDPKTH
— The Hockey News (@TheHockeyNews) January 31, 2020
Feeling the Friday Blues? I don’t think that’s a real thing, but cheer yourself up with this piece anyways:
Hockey? @MarkLazerus‘ 7-year-old daughter could take it or leave it. Hockey mascots? Now that’s her jam. So we asked her to break down the mascot madness at NHL All-Star weekend. Read her story: https://t.co/vQONkL2iqC
— The Athletic NHL (@TheAthleticNHL) January 30, 2020
Should the Stars stand pat at the trade deadline this year? Greg Wyshynski thinks so:
NHL trade deadline preview: Possible moves, what to watch for all 31 teams https://t.co/Rfz1PJs2FX
— Greg Wyshynski (@wyshynski) January 30, 2020
Finally, I’m just gonna leave this here…
Gerard Gallant on the shock of being fired, on turning the page and on taking his time https://t.co/vstV1Andhz
— Pierre LeBrun (@PierreVLeBrun) January 30, 2020