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Dallas Stars Daily Links: Moving On

Posted on by Tyler Mair

The Dallas Stars blew a 3-0 lead last night to the Arizona Coyotes, ultimately falling 4-3 in overtime to one of the worst teams in the NHL.

But making it to overtime secured Dallas a playoff spot, so while head coach Rick Bowness was happy to move on:

“Different ending tonight,” Bowness said about the third period. “That’s just self-inflicted. I don’t know, the guys just stopped thinking… You know what? You move on. We’ll get ready for the playoffs. … Most important thing is that we’re in the playoffs and we move on.”

Of course, blowing late leads — and losing against vastly inferior competition — has been a recurring theme this season. But Bowness does not see it as an issue, or at least is unwilling to discuss it:

A follow-up question was asked: “This has been a pattern throughout the season — ”

“Nope, no, different reasons,” Bowness said. “Just different reasons we lost those games. No big deal.”

“You said there were different reasons throughout the season — ”

“Those games are long gone,” Bowness said. “I’m not even worried about those games. I’m not. We addressed it. We’re one of the best teams in the league at coming from behind in the third period. Stuff happens, you move on.”

You can read more about the game and the circumstances surrounding it in Saad Yousuf’s piece here.

Stars Stories

Here’s Rick Bowness’ press conference in full:

And here’s captain Jamie Benn in an interview about the upcoming postseason:

After a brief flirtation with “Will they make the playoffs?” the Stars are back to “Who will they play in the playoffs?”

Around the League

A couple other Central teams took the ice last night in what was a rather quiet night overall:

  • The Winnipeg Jets were able to hold onto their shutout, beating the Philadelphia Flyers 4-0. [Broadstreet Hockey]
  • Even if the Stars had lost in regulation, the Chicago Blackhawks would have eliminated the Vegas Golden Knights with their 4-3 shootout victory. [Second City Hockey]/

The Coyotes win did matter, however, in securing top lottery odds for the Montreal Canadiens:

Does St. Louis stay on as head coach? Elliotte Friedman excerpts his interview with the Canadiens’ head coach in his latest 32 Thoughts:

Speaking of drafts…

Stars general manager Jim Nill goes on the record regarding his stance on the shootout in Pierre Lebrun’s latest piece:

Finally, Greg Wyshynski ranks his order of players who “need” a Stanley Cup, with two Stars players in the top tier:

Talking Points